Nine out of ten parents with children below the age of sixteen are prepared to help them financially to achieve their professional goals, according to research from the Skipton Building Society. The costs for this could set the parents back tens of thousands of pounds. Many hope that their child will become academic high flyers, and a large percentage hope that they will aim for traditionally respected professions, such as law or medicine.
The report claims that training to become a doctor could cost more than £60,000, and an education in law around £45,000. Out of the eighty seven per cent of parents are prepared to financially help their children, 19% plan to release equity from their home to pay for costs, and 22% intended to hand over inheritance early.
More than half of those questioned in the survey were thinking of setting up a savings account to pay for their child's professional education.
Our view
Whether it is sound financial advice or not to help children, most parents love their children and will do as much as they can to help. In these days of huge property prices for youngsters and huge property profits for the oldies, is it any wonder that they offer to help.
Care needs to be taken though just in case parents get caught with special rules on Inheritance Tax or Care Fees Planning and deprivation of assets.