Bank of Mum and Dad funds one in two house purchases among under-35s Legal & General research reveals

• New data from Legal & General shows that 56% of first-time buyers aged under 35 received financial support from the Bank of Mum and Dad to help them step on the housing ladder
• Nearly three-quarters (71%) of these new homeowners would not have been likely to buy without financial help from family or friends
• But ‘BoMaD’ is helping older buyers, too – the Bank of Mum and Dad will lend £2.14bn to the over 35s this year

The research follows earlier findings from Legal & General, which showed that the Bank of Mum and Dad is stepping in to support loved ones as the economic impact of COVID-19 takes hold. A third (33%) of all people looking to buy in the next five years plan on getting financial help from family or friends.

In 2020, BoMaD ‘lenders’ will play an active role in 73,160 property purchases among those aged under 35. That’s only an 8% decrease from 2019 transaction levels (79,631), despite wider property purchases collapsing by nearly half during Q2 2020. [1]Legal & General research also shows that the Bank of Mum and Dad is lending on average £19,000 to first-time buyers under the age of 35, with 21% of respondents in this age bracket saying they received more than £30,000. In total in 2020, the under 35s will receive £1.36bn in BoMaD contributions, helping them to purchase £18.11bn worth of property. However, not all first-time buyers will receive the funding as a gift, with 30% expected to pay at least some of it back.

It’s not just the under-35s that need financial support from the Bank of Mum and Dad, however. Financial support for home purchases by those aged over 35 will account for £2.14bn, or 61% of the Bank of Mum and Dad’s total lending in 2020. While it’s likely that this high figure is in part due to older first-time buyers are looking for larger, more expensive properties as a home for their growing families, BoMaD will still be behind 101,800 transactions among the over-35s – that’s around 30,000 more BoMaD supported purchases than we’re seeing in the under 35s age group. Even one in ten (9%) people aged over 55 planning to buy said they would have had to delay their purchase without financial support from BoMaD.

Even with so many relying on the Bank of Mum and Dad for funding, and the country facing up to the economic implications of COVID-19, BoMaD lenders themselves are still eager to help out. Nearly 74% of those who have seen their incomes fall during the pandemic say the crisis has made them no less willing to help loved ones onto the housing ladder.

The information contained in this press release is intended solely for journalists and should not be relied upon by private investors or any other persons to make financial decisions.