New research1 from Santander Mortgages highlights the increasing dependence on the “Bank of Gran and Grandad”, as almost one in 10 (eight per cent) first time buyers (FTBs) now rely on them for their deposit, a four-fold increase compared to those who bought their home five years ago (two per cent).

Over the past five years there has been a large shift towards turning to family for help in order to get a foot on the property ladder. Of those currently looking to buy, 32 per cent will use a family loan to help with the deposit, a sharp increase from the 13 per cent of current homeowners who asked for financial help from their families.

The bank’s study, which took a snapshot of FTB attitudes towards the property market, revealed that FTBs estimate their deposit will be, on average, 32 per cent of their salary. However, a significant one in five (19 per cent) expects to pay more than half of their annual income on their deposit.

In comparison, current homeowners estimated that when they bought their first home, their deposit was an average of 20 per cent of their yearly income, with only 5 per cent of them spending more than half of their salary on a deposit.

The research also reveals a sizeable imbalance when it comes to home deposits and gender. Almost a quarter (23 per cent) of women expect to spend more than half of their annual salary on their deposit. This compares to just 14 per cent of men who expect to spend the same proportion of their salary.
Despite the extra help from family members, FTBs saving for a deposit expect to do so for an average of five years. A whole year longer than those who bought their first property five years ago, who saved for an average of four years.

This difference is likely due to the much higher proportion of those who say the cost of everyday living expenses eats into the amount of money that could otherwise be saved (40 per cent of current first time buyers’ versus 18 per cent of those who bought five years ago).

Despite these steep increases, FTBs appear optimistic about the property market with 10 million UK adults2 planning to buy their first home in the next five years. Indeed, 45 per cent of those looking to buy are more positive now than they were a year ago, compared to just 20 per cent whose confidence had declined.

The research also shows the health of the UK economy has had little effect on those planning to buy, with 44 per cent saying that while they are concerned, they will go ahead with their purchase regardless, and 39 per cent claiming that economic factors will not affect their decision to buy at all.

Miguel Sard, Managing Director of Mortgages, Santander UK said: “Despite having to use alternative income streams over and above their salary – such as relying on the Bank of Gran and Grandad - today’s first time buyers are demonstrating resilience and determination to achieve their home ownership goals. The purchase of a first property still remains high on the priority list for many people across the UK and it’s encouraging to see so many first time buyers feeling positive about the year ahead.

“We know many people like to shop around for the best deals online and it should be no different when looking for a mortgage. With our online mortgage application we are making things as easy as possible for our customers, helping them find the deal best to meet their needs, at a time and place that suits them.”

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Notes to Editors

1)  Research was carried out online by Opinium from the 10th February to 17th February, 2017, amongst a 2,004 nationally representative sample. This sample was boosted to include 1,000 looking to buy, or have bought their first property, in the next / last 5 years.
2)  395 are looking to buy out of a 2,004 nationally representative sample = 20% X 51339000 (total brits) = 10,119,214

Santander UK is a financial services provider in the UK that offers a wide range of personal and commercial financial products and services. It has brought real competition to the UK, through its innovative products for retail customers and relationship banking model for UK SMEs. At 31 December 2016, the bank serves around 14 million active customers with c20,000 employees and operates through 841 branches (which includes 60 university branches) and 67 regional Corporate Business Centres. Santander UK is subject to the full supervision of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) in the UK. Santander UK plc customers are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) in the UK.

About Us
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC LN) is a leading retail and commercial bank, headquartered in Spain, with a meaningful market share in 10 core countries in Europe and the Americas. It is among the world’s top banks by market capitalization. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper, in a way that is simple, personal and fair. Founded in 1857, Santander had EUR 1.52 trillion in managed funds, 125 million customers, 12,200 branches and 188,000 employees at the close of 2016. Santander made attributable profit of EUR 6,204 million in 2016, an increase of 4% compared to the previous year.

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