Time to pay up for property, parents!

More than half of Irish people feel that parents should help to pay for their children’s first home.

That’s according to a recent survey carried out by Lotus Investment Group which found 51 per cent of the population to be in favour of parental financial assistance for first time buyers.

Of the 1,000 people involved in the survey, 34 per cent said that the obligation could only be determined on a case to case basis, with the remaining 15 per cent saying that it was not a good idea at all.

Commenting of the results of the survey, David Grin, Chairperson of Lotus Investment Group, said: “Property price growth has slowed considerably with the market now close to equilibrium, which is good for buyers.

“However, as evidenced by recent reports, the fact remains that affordability is still a challenge for thousands of would-be first-time-buyers all over the country.

“High rents and high property prices are making that elusive 'ten per cent' a challenge, as those in their 20s and 30s struggle to budget for monthly expenditures and the savings required.”

The research showed that it could take anywhere from 1-15 years for a first time buyer to save the deposit required.

Mr Grin continued: “It’s important for these parents to take into account that while they may be managing financially at the moment, they do have their retirement to think about.

“It’s important that people don’t end up handing over thousands that they find they themselves might need as their own nest egg when they stop working, and perhaps still have their own mortgage to pay.”

He concluded: “What was also interesting to note from the survey was that a significantly higher number of men (19 per cent) than women (11 per cent) felt their parents should ‘support their children, whenever they can, no matter what’.”