Survey Reveals Shared Ownership Buyers Don’t Need the Bank of Mum and Dad

The majority of prospective Shared Ownership buyers have not received financial help from family members, a new survey from leading property portal Share to Buy has revealed.

In the survey of over 2,000 users on sharetobuy.com, 73% of respondents confirmed that they have not received any money from parents or family members to put towards their deposit – a stark contrast to the 49% of first time buyers reported to have used the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ to purchase on the open market in 2021.1

Going it alone and saving for a property independently, 30% of participants surveyed currently have a deposit between £5,001 and £10,000 saved, while 25% of prospective purchasers said they have a deposit between £10,001 and £20,000 in the bank. This level of deposit would make the vast majority of Shared Ownership properties on the Share to Buy portal (72%) accessible to these buyers, with an average deposit of just £8,426 required for a 25% share of a home. When compared to the average 10% deposit on a first time buyer home in England, £23,9662, this again proves Shared Ownership to be a much more achievable route onto the property ladder.

The survey also indicates that first time buyers can achieve their dream of getting on the property ladder much quicker than those looking to buy on the open market. Almost 80% of respondents have been saving their deposit for five years or less, with the majority taking between two and five years to build their current level of savings. In comparison, those hoping to buy on the open market in London, for example, are having to save for 43 years on average,3 or calling on Mum and Dad in order to reach the deposit level required to buy a home.

Despite asking prices for UK homes marking their highest monthly increase in 20 years4, it is clear that hopeful Shared Ownership buyers are undeterred – with almost 60% revealing that they are optimistic about being able to buy a property soon. This stat comes despite 53% of respondents admitting they are worried about increasing interest rates.

Nick Lieb, Head of Operations at Share to Buy, comments: “The results of our survey are unmistakable – affordable homeownership options, such as Shared Ownership and Help to Buy, are making a significant difference to budding buyers who want to purchase their first home. Shared Ownership properties often require a much lower deposit than you would need when purchasing on the open market, meaning that hopeful buyers no longer need to spend years, or even decades, scraping together tens of thousands of pounds. Shared Ownership allows buyers to not only get on the property ladder faster, but also independently – without relying on support from parents or family.”

Property portal Share to Buy is the UK’s leading independent website for first time buyers, listing over 4,000 Shared Ownership and Help to Buy homes, as well as providing a wealth of independent information and how-to guides for budding buyers.