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Want A Home? Call Mom
Vancouver’s market may be softer, but many young buyers still need a six-figure assist from Mom and Dad.
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Read Time: 4 minutes
💰 The Bank Of Mom And Dad
Source: Globe & Mail
The 411: Vancouver’s softer housing market is bringing young buyers back, but many are getting there with a six-figure assist from their parents.
Roughly one-third of first-time buyers relied on parental help after the pandemic, according to previous CIBC research cited in the article.
In B.C., the average gifted down payment reached $204,000, up 90% since 2019.
Buyers moving from smaller homes into larger ones received even more, averaging about $230,000 in parental assistance.
The national average gifted down payment was much lower at $115,000.
Some parents are skipping the big lump-sum gift and helping cover monthly mortgage payments instead.
Gifts can make the difference in qualifying for a mortgage, especially when homes still cost $1.5 million to $2 million.
Parents can gift the entire down payment on an insured mortgage, and the recipient generally does not declare the gift as income..
Why This Matters: Vancouver’s correction is creating opportunities, but not everyone gets the same shot at them. A $200,000 cheque from Mom and Dad can turn an unaffordable home into a doable purchase pretty quickly.