Did you get parental help to buy any houses you own?

Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand those who are just getting 1 million dollars towards a house. There are tax implications.


No, in most cases. You have to file a form with the IRS to report the gift. When the giver dies, that amount is deducted from the estate exclusion amount. The current exclusion amount is $13.61 million per person, and is portable between spouses so $27.22 for a couple. For a $1 million gift, the exclusion would drop to $26.22. If you’re worth more than $26m, your estate will pay the tax, and you’re likely have other estate planning measures in place, anyway. The exclusion amount could go down in the future, but the IRS has indicated in the past that it wouldn’t penalize people for making gifts when the exclusion amount was higher.
Anonymous
Not that I own now, but my first house in the 80s. My parents lent me about $10K to help with the down payment. I paid them back over the next year or so. I was very grateful for the help.
Anonymous
Nope. I support MY parent (widowed).
Anonymous
Nope. not ever.
5 years ago we purchased an empty nester executive home for for 590k thats now worth 750k.
We paid cash for our lake home - 250k and now worth 500k.
Bought a condo in Florida last year for 450k. Probably worth that or maybe a little less now.
All properties paid for.
We're about to retire -property rich but a tad cash poor.
When I say rich, rich for us. We live in the midwest.
Anonymous
We got a bridge loan when we bought a house before our old one had sold. We paid it back two months later when the old house sold. It was easier that way.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:We got a bridge loan when we bought a house before our old one had sold. We paid it back two months later when the old house sold. It was easier that way.
It was for part of the down payment of the original house. We would have sold stock otherwise. It was less than what you can give without tax consequences.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand those who are just getting 1 million dollars towards a house. There are tax implications.


No, in most cases. You have to file a form with the IRS to report the gift. When the giver dies, that amount is deducted from the estate exclusion amount. The current exclusion amount is $13.61 million per person, and is portable between spouses so $27.22 for a couple. For a $1 million gift, the exclusion would drop to $26.22. If you’re worth more than $26m, your estate will pay the tax, and you’re likely have other estate planning measures in place, anyway. The exclusion amount could go down in the future, but the IRS has indicated in the past that it wouldn’t penalize people for making gifts when the exclusion amount was higher.


Exactly. Plenty of people get $1m plus for houses around here.
Anonymous
I wonder what percent of people actually get the type of help we see on this thread. It seems really common for DCUM but if you look at average income and wealth stats around the country it can’t be.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand those who are just getting 1 million dollars towards a house. There are tax implications.


No, in most cases. You have to file a form with the IRS to report the gift. When the giver dies, that amount is deducted from the estate exclusion amount. The current exclusion amount is $13.61 million per person, and is portable between spouses so $27.22 for a couple. For a $1 million gift, the exclusion would drop to $26.22. If you’re worth more than $26m, your estate will pay the tax, and you’re likely have other estate planning measures in place, anyway. The exclusion amount could go down in the future, but the IRS has indicated in the past that it wouldn’t penalize people for making gifts when the exclusion amount was higher.


Exactly. Plenty of people get $1m plus for houses around here.


Lol, no, just because there’s not a tax hit doesn’t mean “plenty of people” are receiving $1 million to buy a house. I mean, parents probably wouldn’t do something like that unless they were worth $10 million. And since most people back then had at least 2-3 kids, that’s $20-30 million—multiples of what’s needed to even get into the 1%.

My neighbor was a Big Law partner for decades. One of their kids now lives in a modest house in Gaithersburg and the other kid is temporarily back home following a divorce.
Anonymous
No. First I have more money than my parents. Second I cannot imagine the dynamic and feelings of knowing that mommy and daddy helped me to purchase my home.
Anonymous
My in-laws loaned us the 20% for the down payment, but we had to pay it back plus interest. I didn’t understand then or now why this really mattered (supposedly it was to avoid PMI) but they and my husband thought it was a great idea. I was like ok whatever. I was so glad when we paid it back - I was tired of thinking about it. My mil would send us “statements” with our new balance each time we paid some off. I cringe just thinking about it.
Anonymous
My grandparents gave me $10k when I was 18 as "early inheritance" (I did not get any more money when they passed.) I put it in a CD and it doubled to $20k.
When I was 27 we bought a house and used the $20k as a down payment, which came out to 10%, so we did have to pay PMI. The house was an extreme fixer upper and we've put in a ton of work.
I am 38 now. My mother, to this day, is resentful that my husband "wouldn't have a house if it wasn't for us" and feels he has not expressed enough gratitude for this monetary gift I received as a teenager from my grandparents who are both long gone.
Anonymous
My parents each gifted my husband and me whatever the limit for the year was—around $14k I think? So x4 that gave us around $50k, which we added to the $40k we had saved to put down 20% on our $450k first (only) home when I was 25 in 2011. They did the same for my sister when she purchased a few years later.

My house is probably worth $800k today.
Anonymous
My in laws loaned us 20K towards the purchase of a home in 2016. We bought a house for 375K. They later forgave 12K, to equalize gifts given to DH's siblings. House is currently worth between 550-600K. The repayment terms were ridiculously generous so we're just making the last payment this year.
Anonymous
1. House 1: no help, a rental, bought before marriage and lived in before marriage
2. Houses 2 and 3s no help, a rental, spouse bought before marriage and rented before marriage
3. House 4: vacation home, no help
4. House 5: vacation home, no help
5. House 6: 100% help- inherited (stepped up basis) through a trust
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