Research suggest first time buyers still need the bank of mum and dad

Almost half of first time buyers in the UK still need financial help to get onto the property ladder, new research has found.

Some 18% are given money from their parents to help with the deposit for their first home an 18% also get a loan from their family, according to the latest research from Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks.

It suggests that despite help programmes from the Government aimed specifically at making home buying more affordable the so called bank of mum and dad is still needed by a substantial number of first time buyers.

The findings also shows that slightly more first time buyers need help from family than last year when it was 48% but it is considerably less than in 2012 and 2013 when 63% and 78% required help.

A breakdown of the findings show that more first time buyers in Wales need help with 64% relying on parents, followed by 57% in London and 56% in Yorkshire. In contrast only 38% in the South East and 43% in Scotland turned to their parents when buying their first property.

The new research also found that 66% of aspiring home owners rent a property before they buy their first home while 26% opt to stay at home with their parents or a family member to help them save for a deposit.

Taking the step from renting to owning was motivated by finances for 31%, while a further 31% saw it as an investment for the future and it worked out cheaper than renting for 14%.