Money
Retirement
Babyboomers bankrolling adult kids
Older parents are lending their adult children a massive £67 million - much of which was earmarked for their own retirement, according to a report
The study claims the average amount given by parents to their offspring is £12,610, when over a third of them had planned to use it to enjoy retirement.
However, parents feel their children need the money more than they do, with four in 10 of their offspring using the cash to pay off urgent debts.
The other common reasons for the handouts was to help with the deposit for a house purchase or buying a car. Some needed the money for day to day living expenses, household purchases such as furnishings as well as education fees.
Professor Merlin Stone, an economist, said: "It is not surprising that the trend of giving or loaning a substantial amount of money to adult children has risen over the past year.
"The current generation of young adults are facing increasing levels of debt as well as steep house prices, so they are increasingly turning to their parents for hand-outs to help with these financial drains.
"Worryingly this report shows the total amount of these gifts is also on the increase, possibly reflecting the rise in every day living expenses for which these sums are being used.
"Baby boomers, now mostly retired or entering retirement, have just about saved enough to fund their retirement, but they are facing their funds being depleted by their offspring."
But it seems that children still know how to tug at parents' heart strings long after they have flown the nest.
Even though it may mean cutting back, six in 10 say they were happy to help out, and a third are resigned to the fact that it is "what parents do these days".
More than half the parents that have already given money to their children are expecting to have to dig deeper into their pockets and shell out again in the future.
This group of parents has already forked out more than the average amount of £14,525, and on average, think that they will have to donate another £11,585, meaning they are currently just over halfway through the giving cycle.
Anne Young from Scottish Widows, who commissioned the survey, said: "It is obvious that parents still need to be around to help their children out, especially as the figures show that they are increasingly being used to provide an emergency loan, to help their kids get back into the black."
* Written by Holly Thomas, the deputy personal finance editor of the Daily Express and Sunday Express. Holly's opinions are her own and for general information only. Always seek independent financial advice.
