The Burrow
Apr 27, 2026
Home ownership is becoming an increasingly expensive life goal, one that feels further and further away for younger generations. This has led many to turn to a common source of financial aid – the bank of mum and dad.
As home loan comparison experts, the team at Compare the Market surveyed more than 3,000 adults across Australia, the USA and Canada to reveal how common intergenerational financial support is when it comes to buying a home.
The survey revealed that almost a third of adults had received some form of financial assistance from parents or grandparents to buy a house. This was most common in Australia, with 34% saying they’d had monetary help from previous generations, while in Canada it was 31% and Americans were the least likely at 27%.
In contrast, almost half of Americans surveyed said they had bought or would buy a home on their own (47%), followed by Australians at 42% and Canadians at 41%.
The most common form of financial assistance parents and grandparents gave was gifting money for a house deposit. This was most common in Australia at 14%, while the USA and Canada were both at 10%.
The second-most common form of assistance in Australia was parents and grandparents becoming loan guarantors. Nine per cent of Aussies surveyed said they had parents become guarantors – where the parents’ home equity is used to secure a mortgage.
This was the case for 6% of Americans and Canadians surveyed, which was the third-most common option in conjunction with lending money for a deposit (with the agreement that the child pays them back), as well as letting the adult child live rent-free to help them save.
| Most common forms of financial help from parents or grandparents when purchasing a home | Australia | USA | Canada |
| Family/parental guarantors | 9% | 6% | 6% |
| Gifting money to go towards a deposit | 14% | 10% | 10% |
| Lending money for the deposit on the agreement it gets paid back | 7% | 6% | 6% |
| Offering rent-free living while saving | 7% | 6% | 6% |
| Joint purchasing of the home | 4% | 5% | 5% |
| All other forms of financial help | 8% | 9% | 7% |
| Bought / will buy without support | 42% | 47% | 41% |
| Don’t currently own a home | 24% | 26% | 28% |
Note: respondents could select multiple options, while the ‘buying without support’ option was exclusive. This means that percentages do not add up to 100.
Of those surveyed, almost two-thirds of Australians with a home said they would not have been able to purchase a home without getting financial assistance from their parents or grandparents (61%). It was a similar story in Canada with 59% saying they wouldn’t have been able to afford a home without their parents. Americans were split with 49% saying they couldn’t have done it without intergenerational support.
Looking to the future for those without homes, 48% of Australians surveyed said they will likely need financial help from parents or grandparents to buy a home. In Canada it was 38%, while in America only 24% said they won’t be able to buy a home without their parents or grandparents.
However, while times are financially tough for people wanting to buy their own home, the bank of mum and dad is struggling too.
Of those who said they would need financial support from parents and grandparents, 29% of Australians, 16% of Americans and 20% of Canadians specified they didn’t think their parents or grandparents would be able to afford it.
| Will you need financial help from your parents or grandparents to buy a home? | Australia | USA | Canada |
| Yes | 19% | 8% | 18% |
| Yes, but my parents/grandparents likely can’t afford to offer financial help | 29% | 16% | 20% |
| No | 26% | 40% | 26% |
| I don’t plan on buying a house | 26% | 36% | 36% |
Interestingly, of those surveyed, 40% of Americans said they wouldn’t need any help buying a house, compared to 26% of Australians and Canadians. Additionally, 36% of Americans and Canadians, plus 26% of Australians, said they don’t plan on buying a house at all.
Helping adult children buy a home isn’t the only way that parents and grandparents provide monetary support. The survey asked if respondents received any other financial support from older generations, and Canadians were the most likely to support in other ways at 40%.
Australia was next at 37% trying to help their kids, followed by 36% of Americans.
The most common method of financial support in Australia and Canada was giving money as a gift every now and then (20% in both countries), while 20% of Americans said their parents lent money, with the expectation it would be paid back.
| Other types of financial assistance from parents/grandparents | Australia | USA | Canada |
| Lending money for some expenses with an agreement of paying it back | 16% | 20% | 18% |
| Giving money as a gift irregularly for big expenses | 20% | 15% | 20% |
| Sending money regularly to help with recurring expenses | 5% | 7% | 6% |
| None | 63% | 64% | 60% |
Note: respondents could select multiple options, while the ‘none’ option was exclusive. This means that percentages do not add up to 100.
Saving up for a home is a tremendous effort, but whether you get support from the bank of mum and dad or not, comparing home loans can help you become a home owner – and help you save money while doing it.
Eligible Australians can compare and apply for home loans with Compare the Market from a range of lenders, and there are several benefits to this. Stephen Zeller, General Manager of Money at Compare the Market, explains.
“Comparing home loans helps you weigh up interest rates, fees and features with ease. Even a small difference in interest rates can save you thousands over the course of a loan.
“Our mortgage experts can guide you from beginning to end, from financial assessments and calculating borrowing power to application, plus some steps of the home-buying process itself.”
Compare the Market commissioned PureProfile to survey 1,020 Australian, 1,013 Canadian, and 1,104 American adults in April 2026.
A previous survey for 2025 is available to view here.