Back in 2016, our Prime Minister at the time Malcolm Turnbull, was getting sledged. This is because he said that it was a parent’s responsibility to gift their kid a first home deposit.
What followed was the roast of the century. The Opposition Leader, Bill Shorten, went on the attack.
In a conversation with Turnbull, Shorten said, “Can the Prime Minister confirm that in the past two weeks, his advice to young Australians struggling to buy their first home was to have rich parents or to have parents who buy you a home when you turn one.”
“Prime Minister, just how out of touch are you?”
It’s been over seven years since this iconic conversation took place, and how the times have now changed. ‘Cause in 2023, it’s becoming more and more ‘normal’ for a parent to help their kids purchase a piece of property.
According to a Finder survey of 1033 Australian parents, plenty of ‘rents are planning on gifting their kids a slice of a first home deposit. In fact, the average amount of money was $33,278.
Here are some other wild statistics:
|
State |
Finder’s Question — How much do you think you’ll gift your kids to help them buy a home? |
| Victoria |
$52,716 |
|
South Australia |
$44,656 |
| NSW |
$40,191 |
|
Queensland |
$36,497 |
| Western Australia |
$31,076 |
Source: Finder’s Parenting Report 2023 of Parents of Children 0 — 12, November 2022
When discussing these stats, Sarah Megginson, Finder’s Head of Editorial, explained that the property market is very different from that of the twenty-tens.
“Recent property price hikes, combined with interest rate rises, have made it extremely tough for young buyers to save a sufficient deposit,” said Megginson, “let alone qualify for a home loan.”
“If parents are in a position to step in to stump up a deposit, it’s important for that gift to come with the support of financial literacy too. Asking your kids to prepare a household budget will ensure they’re equipped to handle further rate rises.”
However, if you’re a parent who can’t afford to gift their kid a first home deposit, don’t feel bad. As per Finder’s survey, 51% of the respondents said that they’d give their critters $1000 or less.
Good luck on the property hunt.
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