Mum & Dad, I can’t afford to buy a house

Help! Mum and Dad, I can’t afford to buy a house…

If the cost of living crisis and rising interest rates have prompted you to consider lending your child or children some money to purchase their first home, we urge you to read the following article on how to do this in the safest way possible—for you and for them.

The problem facing most Australians…

Streeterlaw understands that the current cost of living crisis and rising interest rates has prompted a lot of families to sit down at the dinner table and discuss lending money to their children earlier than they would have expected to, in order to help their children get into the property market.

If this sounds like something your family is considering, there are a few things for you to keep in mind in order to protect your assets whilst lending a helping hand to your child/ren.

The proposal

In circumstances such as this, your specialist Streeterlaw Solicitors will generally encourage the preparation of a written agreement between the parents and child/ren to document the terms of the gift/loan. We will also encourage you, as parents, to consider the impact of this gift/loan on your estate plan and we have the expertise in-house to help you update it accordingly.

We encourage parents to think about the following elements regarding a loan or ‘gift’ they wish to advance to their child/ren:

1. Roughly how much they can afford to gift/lend.
2. Whether they wish to have a registered mortgage or interest on the title of the home that their child/ren purchases.
3. Whether they want the gift/loan repaid.
4. If they wish for the gift/loan to be repaid, in what timeframe?
5. If they wish for the gift/loan to be repaid, will there be interest attached? If so, at what percentage?

Our specialist Streeterlaw Solicitors will talk you through each of the above considerations to help you work out what type of written agreement will work best for your personal situation.

The solution

Our astute commercial lawyers and wise estate planning team will:

• Undertake an assessment of your assets, risk profile and estate planning considerations for your retirement and beyond;
• Advise you in relation to the most appropriate plan forward to safeguard you at present and future-proof your position; and,
• Prepare the necessary documents to give effect to this gift/loan, including lodging instruments on title if need be.

Contact Streeterlaw today or phone (02) 8197 0105 to protect you during this generous act of lending.