08/20/2026
The builder's website quotes $2,788 a month on this one.
The real payment is $5,003.
This is the Jackson by UnionMain Homes at 193 Mountain Laurel in Waxahachie. 4 bedrooms, 3.5 baths, 2,931 square feet, one story, 3-car garage. Listed at $519,000, about 30 miles from downtown Dallas. I ran it FHA, 3.5% down, at 6.67% on a 30-year fixed.
Down payment: $18,165
Loan amount: $509,600 (includes the FHA upfront premium financed in)
Principal and interest: $3,278
Property taxes: $1,147
Homeowners insurance: $240
Mortgage insurance: $230
HOA: $108
Total: $5,003 a month.
That builder number isn't a lie. It's principal and interest, and the asterisk says so. But nobody qualifies on principal and interest. Your lender qualifies you on all of it.
The part that catches people here: Myrtle Creek sits in a municipal management district that adds 0.600% on top of the city, county and school rate. On a $519,000 home that's $3,114 a year — $260 a month — that a buyer comparing this to a non-MMD Waxahachie subdivision would never see coming.
At a 45% debt-to-income ratio you'd need roughly $11,118 a month gross. About $133,416 a year.
Two other things worth knowing on new construction: first-year taxes are often assessed on land only, so the bill can jump once the finished home is reassessed. And conventional at 5% down actually beats FHA here by about $130 a month — worth running both before you sign anything.
Comment PLAN and I'll run your exact numbers on any home you're looking at.
Estimates only; confirm rates, taxes, insurance, PMI/MIP, HOA and income qualification with your lender and title company. Steven J. Thomas · Refind Realty DFW · NMLS #689220 · Equal Housing Opportunity
