'Family mortgages' give young adults home-buying help

Updated
handing over of keys after...
handing over of keys after...

Pic: Shutterstock

With tough new mortgage questionnaires to fill out, and many of the best offers requiring large deposits, getting that first step on the property ladder once again seems out of the reach of most young people.

But a new 'family mortgage' could give young adults the chance to buy their own home with the help of their relatives.


Related Searches



Launched yesterday by the Family Building Society - the first new building society in the UK for more than 30 years - the new home loans will allow young people to buy a house with a deposit of as little as five per cent, provided parents, grandparents or other relatives are willing to put up their own savings as security worth a further 20 per cent.

The money can be deposited in a savings account with the Family Building Society, and relatives then have the option of foregoing their interest on the account and allowing the home buyer to pay interest only on the value of the loan minus the savings deposited, thereby reducing mortgage payments. That cash, though still owned by the generous family member, cannot be reclaimed for ten years.

Alternatively, relatives can use their house as security, on the loan, effectively acting as a guarantor for the house buyer. Young people who can persuade more than one family member to help out can even take advantage of more than one option.

As an added bonus, the Society says it will pay the buyer's mortgage payments for six months should they lose their job "through no fault of their own".
%VIRTUAL-AFCSponserAds%
Mark Bogard, chief executive of the Family Building Society, told the Daily Mail: "Our research shows that children would rather soldier on than take money out of their parents' retirement pot.

"Our family mortgage gets buyers on the property ladder sooner and keeps family members in control of their money. And because it's a formal arrangement, everybody knows where they stand."

What do you think? Would you be happy to help your kids out with a 'family mortgage'? Leave your comments below...

First-Time Buyers on Rise
First-Time Buyers on Rise

Advertisement