Bank of Mum and Dad ban — brave idea or broken logic?

Whilst I had to make my own way in the world without help from the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad, restricting gifted deposits is a misguided idea. It would be virtually impossible to police and would simply punish the middle. Those at the very top, who can buy properties outright for their children, would be unaffected, while only those relying on modest parental support would be caught — which hardly seems fair.

In todays market, and the current cost of living, Bank of mum and dad is the only option for some people to get on the ladder. I will certainly want to help my 2 children get on the property ladder at their earliest conveniance. Discriminating against an individual because their family can afford to help them is outrageous, will the lenders start to decline mortgages based on affordability next because the applicants parents paid to put them through university and only have their current job because of that?

If you lead a Champagne lifestyle on a lemonade budget and cant afford to buy a house because of your £400 finance agreement on your car or your £100 a month iPhone contract, then you will fail affordability wheter or not your parents gift you a deposit. Penalising an applicant because their parents can afford to make their childs life just that little bit easier stinks of seperatism and was probably a brain wave of an individual who was born with a silver spoon in their mouth.

The idea of restricting gifted deposits is nothing short of ridiculous. For thousands of first-time buyers, the only realistic route onto the ladder is help from the Bank of Mum and Dad. Why should families be penalised for wanting to support their children? If anything, government and lenders should be making it easier, not harder. At the end of the day, the lender still has the property as security, so the risk isn’t suddenly higher. The real scandal is that successive governments have failed to tackle the root issues: chronic undersupply, stagnant wages, and runaway house prices. Family help isn’t an unfair advantage,it’s a lifeline.

Banning this is crazy- parents should be able to help their childen financially if they wish- it is their money after all! There are many different ways of supporting deposits without being reliant on the liquid cash from parents such as charges on other properties. Sadly many are reliant on parental help so this would be further knock not needed in a flailing market. Lenders widening the gap of deposit donors is useful especially where people aren't related but are 'like family' and they may still want to help. A lot of these options already exist, people just need to take the appropriate advice so they are aware of what is available.

With wages drifting as far from house prices as Rachel Reeves from budgetary reality, a ban may sound bold, but it’s built on broken logic. I had a boost from the Bank of Mum and Dad in my twenties. That leg-up on the ladder laid the foundations of my financial footing for which I'm incredibly grateful.

Beware the law of unintended consequences. Newcastle Building Society's policy is well-intentioned in trying to create fairness, but it ends up treating a symptom rather than the disease. The real issue isn't family help - it's that housing has become so unaffordable that family help is often the only solution, particularly for first-time buyers raise the deposit to get on the housing ladder. Banning gifted deposits may create a purer lending environment, but particularly in London and the South-East, it will simply lock out more first-time buyers entirely. Without addressing the underlying housing supply crisis and affordability issues, this policy may just reduce homeownership further rather than making it more equitable.