Buying Shared Ownership with parents’ support
Everything you need to know about parents supporting first-time buyers with getting on the property ladder.
Getting onto the property ladder can feel like a real challenge for first-time buyers, which is why many are turning to their parents for help with buying a Shared Ownership property – also known as the ‘Bank of Mum & Dad’. But what does navigating Shared Ownership with parents actually look like?
From contributing money towards the home deposit, to gifting funds to help with home buying fees, there are many ways that parents can help out. Let’s run through everything that you need to know.
52%
Over half of first-time buyers received assistance in purchasing their home in 2024.
Source: Savills
£38.5 bn
Over the past four years, £38.5bn has been provided by parents.
Source: Savills
£55,572
First-time buyers receive an average of £55,572 in support from their parents.
Source: Savills
£68,154
In 2025, the average first-time buyer deposit in England is currently £68,154 when buying outright.
Source: Unbiased
Shared Ownership with parents: how can they help?
Whether you’re a parent looking for ways to help your child purchase their first home, or you’re a first-time buyer exploring ways that your parents can get involved, you’re in the right place. We’ve helped thousands of buyers to get on the property ladder, and many of these purchases have included parental support.
Some of the most common ways that parents can get involved include:
Gifting your deposit
One of the most common ways that your parents can help with your Shared Ownership property purchase is by gifting some or all of your deposit. First-time buyers can sometimes struggle to save up a deposit, so this immediately removes a barrier to entry.
Parents can give up to £3,000 per year as a cash gift without any tax to consider, though anything above this could have inheritance tax implications if they pass away within seven years of giving the gift. As with any financial decision, we’d suggest speaking to a financial adviser prior to giving a substantial gift amount.
Contributing to homebuying fees
Alongside your deposit, there are a number of other fees that will need to be paid during the process of buying your new home. From stamp duty to mortgage arrangement fees, these can mount up quickly if you haven’t prepared for them in advance. As a quick overview, some of these fees include:
- Surveys: £400 – £1,500+
- Solicitors and conveyancing: £500 – £1,500+
- Mortgage arrangements: £0 – £2,000+
- Stamp Duty: 0% – 12% of your purchased share price
As with gifting a deposit, parents can contribute to any or all of these fees quite easily. It’s often just a good idea to keep a paper trail of how much was given and for what, in case there are any financial disputes down the road.
Discussing your finances
Sometimes, receiving Shared Ownership help from parents can be as simple as sitting down and talking through the process. Parents will often have a lot more experience with home ownership than first-time buyers, so they can be a really handy source of information on everything from mortgage rates to furnishings.
To help those conversations along, make sure to check out our comprehensive HOME Hub. We’ve got articles on every aspect of Shared Ownership, which should help to answer any queries that might come up. You might also want to browse our available properties together, and discuss which options would suit you best.
FAQs
Make sense of Shared Ownership by getting answers to a range of frequently asked questions.
Affordability Calculator
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Customer Testimonials
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HOME Hub
Explore our cover-all guide, from affordability to rent, and what happens once you move in.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, however, there are a couple of requirements when going down this route. You must have the funds available in your bank account, and the equity release or remortgage must have been completed ahead of the point of your child’s application for the property.
Staircasing is the process of incrementally buying more shares of a Shared Ownership home. As with a home deposit, parents can contribute a financial gift that will help their child to staircase their level of ownership. As with other contributions, we suggest speaking to a financial adviser before doing so.
We follow the same principles as mortgage lenders in respect of gifted deposits. The expectation is that the money is provided as a gift (rather than a loan), you will hold no interest in the property, and the money is not subject to repayment. We also recommend that you receive independent advice on inheritance tax rules, which may apply to your gift.
No. The gift will not result in you owning any share of the property. It is a gifted financial contribution only.
“We both fell in love with it. I said ‘I want one!'”
Hear from one of our residents and first-time buyer, Rebecca, and her mum, Christine, about their experience of buying with Shared Ownership with us.
