Parents fast track children into homes:

The results revealed those people looking to buy within the next 3 months are more likely to be living with their parents or family members (22% and 25% respectively).

RAMS Chief Executive, Melos Sulicich said first home seekers who are living with family are often able to fast track into homes as they can more easily save money than those who are renting.

“Our survey indicates that about one quarter of first home buyers are living with their parents or other family members to save money to buy their first home. To get the required deposit, a little over half of those surveyed admit they are likely to seek family support (53%) or live at home with their parents (55%),” Mr Sulicich said.

“First home buyers have told us the key challenge to saving for a home loan deposit is paying rent, unexpected expenses and the general cost of living.

“Affordability appears to be the key trigger when making a purchasing decision – nearly three times higher than interest rates alone (66.8% vs 27.4%).

“The results indicated the majority of first home buyers (70%) are renting while saving to buy and are paying an average of $327.10 on weekly rent. This makes it challenging for many first home buyers to get on the property ladder, however it’s not impossible as two thirds of respondents are optimistic they will be able to buy their first home within 12 months,” he said.

About 6 in 10 are saving for a deposit through an online high interest savings account to maximise their rate of return and improve their purchasing power.

“It seems first home buyers are saving more than ever before and RAMS’ home loan experience shows they are becoming more responsible about borrowing money with the average deposit contribution improving from 5% a few years ago to often at least 10% nowadays,” he said.

With the average age of a first home buyer increasing to mid to late 20s, often parents are offering their grown children a fast track into their first home by providing monetary gifts towards a deposit and considering limited guarantor loans.