UK parents give an average of £23,000 when helping their children with a deposit to get onto the property ladder, according to research from Shelter.
Highlighting the increasing strain on the Bank of Mum and Dad, the same poll also found that a fifth of parents helping their children onto the housing ladder had done so using savings set aside for retirement or elderly care.
However, for the majority of parents – already feeling financially squeezed themselves – being able to help their children buy a home just isn’t possible. The research shows that 60% of UK parents are unable to save any money for their children’s future.
Unless politicians commit to building more affordable homes, young people and families who can’t rely on help from their parents will find that a home of their own becomes an ever more distant dream.
Norman Bainbridge from Southampton helped both his daughter and son with the deposits for their first homes. ‘Without financial help our children would never have been able to afford their own places. With house prices rising all the time and rent eating up most of their income it would have taken them decades to save.
‘It’s horrendous for any young person trying to get their own home today. Renting can be very unstable; my daughter didn’t want to start a family without the security of a home of her own, so without our help with the deposit I wouldn’t now have my beautiful granddaughter.
‘We’ve had to dig deep into our savings, but at least we had savings to dip into – many don’t have this option.’
Chief executive of Shelter Campbell Robb said; ‘When parents are having to hand over such vast sums of money to help their children afford a stable home, it is yet another sign that the housing market is spinning out of control.
‘A whole generation of young people are working hard and saving hard, but our desperate shortage of affordable homes still leaves them priced out.
‘A pay-out from the Bank of Mum and Dad can’t be the next generation’s only chance of affording a home of their own. Politicians need to give back hope to all those left priced out by building the affordable homes they are crying out for.
‘From a new generation of part rent part buy homes, to encouraging smaller builders back into the market, it is possible to turn the tide on the housing shortage, but only with the right innovation, investment and political will. It’s time for politicians from all parties to turn their talk into action.’