One in four young people think it would be impossible to buy a home without a partner, according to Post Office Money Mortgages.

And the same proportion of homeowning young couples agree (aged 18-34). A significant 27% of them feel they wouldn’t have been able to get on the ladder on their own.

Double income

Around half of young couples living together are renters, while half jointly own a home, and many are motivated by practical reasons, with 22% admitting they made their initial move to save money.

The average price of a starter home for a first-time buyer (FTB) increased by 7% (£12,785) over the last year to £183,385, while average earnings of a first-time buyer (FTB) household in the UK is £50,000 – nearly double the average annual salary of a single person (£27,274).

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However, despite joining their finances in order to get into their first home, 34% of young coupled homeowners admit they didn’t contribute equally, and for some this led to tension in the relationship (20%).

Moving back home

One in 20 young couples (6%) chooses to live with one of their parents to help them save a deposit. While 29% felt the decreased rent relieved stress while they were saving, they admitted the situation lacked privacy (31%) and led to their parents scrutinizing their finances more (14%).

Owen Woodley, managing director Post Office Money said: “Saving towards the purchase of a home can be understandably daunting and the joint effort to reduce your shared cost of living and boost your savings can sometimes lead to friction in a relationship.

“As a provider that works with a large number of first-time buyers, we know that saving towards a deposit can be a stressful time. As such, we have introduced a new range of fee-free mortgages which only require a five per cent deposit, so the prospect of homeownership feels like a more achievable goal.”