Sufficient Income - The important thing to remember here is to not go above your comfort zone in a monthly payment. Most lenders will let you borrow far more than you would like to pay back on a monthly basis. Lenders typically look at debt-to-income ratios.

FHA
Conventional Loans
With an FHA loan, lenders do not want a borrower's potential mortgage to exceed 31% of their gross monthly income. The lender does not want a borrower's total debt - that is mortgage plus other monthly credit payments - exceed 41% of their gross monthly income.

For example: If a borrower makes $12,000 per year, or $1,000 per month, the lender will allow a mortgage payment of up to $310 per month and allow the borrower to carry total debt of up to $410 per month. The additional $100 per month might be a car payment, credit card payment or payment to a student loan. You can use the same ratio on your income to see how you qualify, but it is best to let a lender run the numbers to be certain.

For conventional loans the so-called front and back-end ratios are 26% and 36%. In a conventional loan there is more flexibility for borrowers with a lot of down payment and/or excellent credit.

Just a side note - There are many types of loans - from loans for veterans, first-time home-buyer loans, FHA loans, and conventional loans. FHA loans typically are used because they are more lenient on credit and will qualify a buyer for more money based on their income. VHDA (Virginia first time homebuyer loans) have the same income to debt ratios as FHA loans, but offer programs that allow less downpayment for a first time home buyer. Most loans above $138,000 fall into the conventional category.