When it comes to getting onto the property ladder,
daughters are beating sons in the battle for the parental pound.
Research released today from Co-operative Bank mortgage services shows
that daughters receive 72% more than their male counterparts in monetary
support from parents.
Daughters can bank on an average of £7,240 worth of financial help when
buying their first home – around £3,000 more than unlucky sons, who can
expect an average of £4,200. In addition, up to four times as many females
than males have received as much as £20,000 from mum and dad to help them
to take their first step onto the ladder.
Recent figures show that the number of first-time buyers needing more
than just their savings to fund a deposit has risen from less than 10%
in 1995 to almost 50% in 2005. Co-operative’s research shows 61% of women
receive parental help toward this deposit, compared to 44% of men. However,
this assistance can often come at a cost, with parents wanting to be more
involved in the buying process of their daughters.
Nearly a third, or 31%, insist on approving the area in which daughters
are choosing to buy, compared to fewer than two in 10 for sons, and two
fifths want to okay the property their daughters choose, compared to just
a quarter for sons. However, perhaps mindful of their boy’s dubious tastes,
twice as many parents want some say in the décor of their son’s first
home, than their daughter’s.
David Newman, director of marketing management at The Co-operative Bank,
says: “Many first-time buyers rely on help from mum and dad to get onto
the property ladder. Much has been written recently about parents that
fund deposits, but our research has found that help comes in many different
forms, from those who are willing to be guarantors to those who help to
fund furnishings, and other important DIY and building work.”
Nearly half of all first-time buyers who have parental help receive it
in the form of assistance with deposits. Buying furniture or furnishings
is also popular with 46% benefiting from trips to Ikea, and more than
two fifths get financial help with DIY work from mum and dad. Other aspects
of parental contribution include covering legal fees, paying off their
children’s other debts and even paying the mortgage.
For the majority this help is not something they will have to pay back,
with four fifths of parents not expecting any repayment of their outlay.
However, an unlucky one in 10 kids will have to repay the amount in full,
with a further 2% also expected to stump up a share of any profits.
Newman adds: “It is encouraging to see that, by helping their children
out, parents are ensuring that they can buy their first property much
quicker than they would otherwise have been able to. It is also interesting
to note that, considering the recent focus on the pay gap that remains
between the genders, women are now winning one financial battle over their
male counterparts.”
However, suburban or country mum and dad are getting a return on their
investment by treating their urban kids’ place like a hotel. Nearly half
of parents drop by whenever they like, one in 10 bring friends to stay
or visit, and the same number bed down with the youngsters when going
on or coming back from holiday.
But it’s a small price to pay for help in getting on the property ladder.
Almost three quarters of first-time buyers estimated it would take two
or more years to get to the same financial position if they had not had
help from their parents, and three in 10 think it would take more than
five years to achieve.
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