Bank of Mum and Dad drives the housing market, and housing inequality
Key takeaways
- 30% of Australian home buyers had some form of help from family, including deposit contributions, gifting a deposit or paying for the entire home.
- Finder's 2026 Home Loan Report found that younger home buyers rely much more on family help than older buyers did.
- What's next: The bank of mum and dad is both a crucial support for many homebuyers, further entrenching housing inequality across generations.
As housing in Australia remains unaffordable, the homeowning dream depends on having parents who can afford to help.
That's according to Finder's 2026 Home Loan Report, which found that 30% of home buyers received family help when buying a home.
11% got help with the deposit, while 5% had family provide the entire deposit. 6% of home buyers had family members act as a guarantor, and 5% received help with home loan repayments.
A remarkable 8% had family pay for their home outright.
This kind of support is known as "the bank of mum and dad", and for many home buyers it's impossible to enter the market without it.
Help with the deposit allows fortunate first home buyers the option to buy faster, spend less time saving and outbid other buyers.
Having homeowning parents guarantee your loan can mean buying with a smaller deposit while avoiding thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in lenders mortgage insurance premiums.
A generational divide
The report also found a stark generational divide on the topic of family support. 89% of baby boomers received no family support when buying property.
For millennials, only 46% could say the same, while just 33% of Gen Z were able to buy property without family help.
The bank of mum and dad drives inequality
Reliance on the bank of mum and dad is partly a necessity in a world where property is so expensive.
Even as property prices begin to fall across Australia, housing is still incredibly expensive. The median property value in Sydney is above $1.2 million, according to Cotality figures.
In Brisbane the median price is over $1 million, and in cities like Perth and Adelaide the median is well over $900,000.
But when buyers are forced to rely on family support, inequality widens. Younger Australians whose parents don't have wealth to spare or own their own homes are further disadvantaged in today's property market.
Sources
Ask a question