Family lending helps households
More than a quarter (28%) of UK adults have needed to borrow money from family members, according to research from the Centre for the Modern Family.
The report by the Scottish Widows think tank reveals the amount lent by family members is worth around £31 billion per year, with individuals receiving an average sum of £2,132.
Nearly a quarter (23%) of family borrowers need support to cover basic living costs.
The report finds that:
39% of parents have lent money to adult children living at home with them
36% of children who have left home have borrowed money from their parents
55% of respondents said they were happy to lend money to family members
1 in 10 said they resented letting family members borrow money
a quarter don’t expect to get back the money they lent.
The report identifies the most immediate costs for post-recession families living in the UK:
41% of respondents said rising living costs presented the biggest problem
26% said they were struggling with mortgage repayments
10% said paying off debt was giving them problems.
Carolyn Fairbairn, chair of the Centre for the Modern Family, said:
“This research highlights not only the scale of the financial support families are providing each other, but also how the modern family dynamics are changing. We know that the family lending economy is now worth over £30 billion and so should the industry be doing more to develop innovative products, which allow families as a whole can contribute to, such as mortgages and ISAs?”