FOMO factor: more Aussies looking to buy with mates or siblings

EVER THOUGHT ABOUT BUYING A PROPERTY WITH A FRIEND OR FAMILY MEMBER? YOU’RE NOT THE ONLY ONE. THE RISING COST OF PROPERTY AND FOMO HAS LED TO MORE THAN A QUARTER OF AUSTRALIANS CONSIDERING BUYING A PROPERTY WITH A ‘NON-TRADITIONAL’ PARTNER.

MOST OF US LONG FOR A PLACE TO CALL OUR OWN.

But what do you do if the price of your dream home seems to be rising out of reach?

Well, more and more young Australians are shedding the “mine” mentality, and adopting the “ours” approach in order to get a foot on the property ladder.

In fact, according to a 1,000 person nationwide survey by CommBank, a quarter of home buyers have considered buying a property with their mates, siblings or parents because of increasing concerns about housing affordability.

And this co-ownership mentality is being strongly driven by the fear of missing out (FOMO), with 35% of respondents admitting to being bitten by the FOMO bug.

What’s driving the trend?

In a nutshell: housing affordability, with more than 60% of survey respondents worried about being priced out of the market.

Other driving factors for teaming up with a mate or family member include being able to buy a bigger and better property, as well as spreading the financial risk if anything goes wrong.

And then there’s additional pressure from family and friends!

More than 4-in-10 prospective buyers admitted to feeling pressure from friends/colleagues who have already bought, or their parents/family who want them to buy.

Co-ownership hurdles and challenges

So, if purchasing a property with family or friends is a viable option, why don’t more people do it?

Well, that’s because there are a number of challenges involved.

For example, the vast majority of respondents said they harboured concerns about putting their relationship with a family/friend under strain/pressure.

Meanwhile, 1-in-10 respondents didn’t even know co-ownership with friends or family was possible.

Another hurdle is that co-buying and co-owning can be a more complicated process.

But rest assured that if it is possible and suitable for you, we can help guide you through it, including making sure that all involved parties are across their financial and legal obligations.

Get in touch to explore your co-buying or guarantor options

Co-ownership with friends or family, or having a parent go guarantor for you, isn’t suitable or possible for everyone.

But there are people out there for whom it might be a good fit.

If you think that could be you, and you want to learn more, then please get in touch.

We’d be happy to run you through a number of possible structured options and opportunities, as well as the challenges, hurdles and pitfalls you’ll want to consider.

And if co-buying doesn’t look like a good fit for you, we can run you through a range of other buying options – including federal government schemes – that might be more suitable.