One in five (19%) parents and grandparents who helped family members get on the property ladder used their own property wealth to do so

• One in five (19%) of the parents and grandparents supporting younger family members do so by using their own property wealth, either by downsizing, equity release or remortgaging
• 74% of those making significant financial gifts did not seek formal financial advice

Family contributions are increasingly essential for home purchases, and generous parents and grandparents are looking to their own property wealth to help support younger buyers, according to new research from Legal and General and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr)¹.

The 'Bank of Family' is expected to help fund 42% of UK property purchases made by those under 55 years old, contributing to a total of 335,000 housing transactions supported by family lending in 2024 - the largest number of property purchases since Legal & General began tracking lending from family members in 2016. Gifting from parents and grandparents is also predicted to hit £11.3bn by 2026.

To help meet these costs, a fifth (19%) of those providing support are doing so by downsizing their property (12%), using equity release (8%) or re-mortgaging (4%). Among Legal & General's customers, 9% used equity release for financial gifting in the first six months of the year².

While gifters who use equity release are required to seek financial advice, the research found that the vast majority of parents and grandparents who made a financial gift (74%) did not seek the guidance of a professional before parting with their money.