GIVE THEM MONEY FOR A HOUSE

This might be the most controversial way of getting the kids to move. Gifting someone a house or even a down payment goes against the grain of a make- it- onyour- own philosophy, but there is little doubt it’s a growing segment of the market.

A study from Mortgage Professionals Canada released last fall found 15 per cent of first-time homebuyers between 2014-2016 received a gift from their parents or family members to help them make the purchase. That percentage was up from 10 per cent in the 1990s.

The old Bank of Mom and Dad doesn’t even seem to require repayment. Only three per cent of first- time homebuyers received a family loan compared to six per cent in the 1990s.

But Janet Boyle, vicepresident of real estate at the Bank of Nova Scotia, cautions that people getting support to make a down payment still remain the exception not the norm. “It’s not a regular occurrence and remember it’s very market dependent,” she said. “You take the ( Greater Toronto Area) or ( Greater Vancouver Area) out of the equation and this probably isn’t happening with the same level of frequency.”