What a bank can legally lend you

Declined, or approved for far less than you expected? The test behind that answer is written into law, and you can run it yourself before you apply.

Under Regulation 23A of the National Credit Act, a credit provider has to subtract three things from your gross income: your statutory deductions, a minimum living-expense figure taken from a gazetted table, and your existing monthly debt. What survives that subtraction is your discretionary income, and it caps the repayment on any new credit. This tool runs that arithmetic and then converts the headroom into the home loan it supports at a rate and term you choose.

The living-expense table is the part almost nobody sees. It is the 2016 gazetted table, verified against the app in June 2026, and a 2025 draft changes its scope rather than its values. It is also usually the line that does the damage, along with existing debt, which is why clearing a car or a credit card before applying often lifts what you can borrow more than a raise would.

What to have at hand:

• your gross monthly income
• every monthly repayment a credit bureau can see: cards, personal loans, vehicle finance, store accounts
• the rate and term you want tested, so the headroom becomes a loan amount
• your PAYE and UIF, which the tool can estimate for you, or the exact deduction total off your payslip

You get the maximum loan, the maximum new instalment, your monthly legal headroom, and the Regulation 23A living-expense figure the law assumes at your income. A stacked bar shows where your income has to go before a lender can consider a new instalment at all. Over-committed, and it says so plainly.

One limit worth stating up front: this is the legal ceiling, not a bank's own credit policy, which is often stricter, and it is not an offer.

Money Cat is an information tool, not financial advice. Confirm any figure that matters with your bank, lender or a registered professional.