Home ownership: Bank of Mum and Dad is the fifth biggest lender

The "Bank of Mum and Dad" has doled out a whopping $22.6 billion in loans to young home buyers, according to new research by Consumer NZ, which surveyed close to 3000 parents.

That's more than Kiwibank ($16.8b) and TSB ($4.2b) combined.

And it makes parents the fifth-biggest lender after ANZ ($71.1b), ASB ($50.7b), Westpac ($44.8b) and BNZ ($39.2b) when it comes to owner-occupier loans - and ahead of Kiwibank ($16.8b)

As house prices have spiralled and increasing rents have made it harder to save, the Bank of Mum and Dad has been chipping in more and more.

A decade ago, Massey University said parents were helping out to the tune of $20,000 to $30,000.

Today, consumer says the Bank of Mum and Dad contributes an average $108,000.

We've reached a point in New Zealand where it's no longer enough to do all "the right things" to buy your first home – to get a job with a good income, save furiously and cut back on the "nice to haves", says Consumer head of campaigns Gemma Rasmussen.

"The role of the Bank of Mum and Dad is more pivotal in the first home buying process, but it also means that we're seeing a greater social divide of who gets to buy a first home, and who does not."

Some 87 per cent of parents were happy to help out, Rasmussen said - because they recognised that buying a first home was not as easy as it was 20 years ago.

Consumer found that two-thirds of parents dipped into their own savings to help their children with a home deposit. Some 17 per cent had to cut back on their own spending, and 16 per cent used part of their inheritance from their own parents.

The research also found other ways of helping out.

Some 25 per cent acted as a guarantor, 11 per cent assisted with mortgage repayments and the same number bought a property in partnership with a child.

Eight per cent of children receiving assistance were lucky enough for their parents to buy a property for them.

But Consumer also found that just over half of parents had no expectation that their child would pay them back, while just over a quarter operated under a "as soon as possible" model. Only 16 per cent expected regular repayment.

While generous, parental assistance also comes with complications.

Tom Hartmann, from financial advice website Sorted, recently told the Herald a "huge intergenerational wealth transfer" is now under way.

But this could come with risks - including failing to properly document the process so it was crystal clear whether the financial assistance was a gift or loan.

See Consumer's full research here.