Buying a home with family or friends: gifts, loans, guarantees

Family help usually comes in one of four forms: buying together, a gift towards the deposit, a loan from family, or a guarantee secured on a relative’s home. They look similar but banks treat them very differently. BNZ says a gift needs evidence, such as a gifting certificate, “to show this money is a gift, and does not need to be paid back”. If you repay family regularly, BNZ says it may include that expense in your application. ANZ says independent legal advice “is mandatory” before a guarantee. In our worked example, two friends on $70,000 each with $100,000 saved could borrow about $400,000; a $50,000 gift lifts that to about $600,000. Banks decide; this is general information, not financial advice.

Four ways family can help

The facts below come from two bank pages, ANZ’s “How parents or family could help you buy your first home” and BNZ’s “Getting help from family to buy your first home”, both read on 10 November 2026. Each describes that bank’s own approach, so each is a single source; other banks may differ.

Buying with friends or family

When two people buy together, the bank looks at both incomes, both sets of debts (including card limits) and the combined deposit. That can help a lot, because each person’s deposit supports four dollars of loan at 80% LVR. ANZ warns that with co-ownership your “responsibilities, goals, and finances become intertwined with someone else’s”, and says each family option carries risk, so independent legal and tax advice is advised. BNZ says “a property sharing agreement can help avoid misunderstanding later down the track”.

A property sharing agreement can cover who put in what, how costs are split, and what happens if one of you wants to sell or cannot pay. Ask your lawyer how ownership and liability for the loan are shared before you sign anything.

First home schemes count everyone. For a Kāinga Ora First Home Loan the income cap is $150,000 combined for two or more buyers (Kiwibank, accessed 10 November 2026), and each buyer can use their own KiwiSaver first-home withdrawal if they meet the rules, which include at least three years of membership and leaving $1,000 in the account. See our First Home Loan guide and KiwiSaver withdrawal guide.

Gifts vs family loans

Gifts. ANZ describes a gift as “a one-off contribution to help you meet deposit requirements”, given with “no intention of it needing to be repaid”. BNZ says you will need evidence, such as a gifting certificate, to show the money is a gift and does not need to be paid back. To the bank, a properly documented gift is simply part of your deposit.

Family loans. If the money must be repaid, tell the bank. ANZ describes a Deed of Debt as “a formal agreement confirming that the money needs to be repaid” if the property is sold or other circumstances arise, and says the bank must approve it in advance. BNZ says “it’s a good idea to document the repayment terms you agree to”, and that if you make regular repayments to a family member, “we may need to include this expense in your home loan application”.

Calling a loan a gift to get a bigger mortgage is not an option: the gifting certificate exists to confirm there is no repayment obligation. If the arrangement is really a loan, document it as one and let the bank decide.

Worked example: two friends, a gift and a loan

Two friends earn $70,000 each ($140,000 together) and take home about $8,851 a month between them (2026/27 tax, ACC and 3.5% KiwiSaver). We use our living-cost floor of $2,400 a month for two adults (our assumption, not a bank figure), $10,000 of card limits, and the 6.94% average test rate. They have $100,000 saved between them.

In every row the deposit binds, which is common for buyers with good incomes and small savings. Pooling turns two $200,000 loans’ worth of deposit into one $400,000 loan on a $500,000 home. A $50,000 gift adds $200,000 of borrowing, because at 80% each dollar of deposit supports four of loan.

The family loan row assumes the bank accepts the borrowed money as deposit, which is the bank’s decision. Even then it costs headroom: the $500 a month comes off serviceability (down about $75,600), and the $50,000 counts as debt for DTI (down $50,000). Here neither binds, so the answer does not change, but on tighter numbers it would. We counted the loan as debt for DTI because Kiwibank lists personal debts in the DTI calculation; a bank may treat a deed of debt with no regular repayments differently.

Try your own figures in our deposit calculator and the borrowing calculator.

Guarantees: help with real risk

With a guarantee, ANZ says “a family member agrees to take responsibility for some or your entire loan” if repayments cannot be made. BNZ is blunt about the risk: the guarantor will be “responsible for some or all of your loan if you fall behind”, and “if they can’t meet the repayments, then their home may be sold to repay your loan”.

ANZ says the guarantor “will undergo an affordability assessment”, and that “independent legal advice is mandatory before proceeding with a guarantee, and tax advice is strongly recommended”. BNZ also describes family assisted lending, where a parent or relative takes a smaller joint loan secured by both homes, and “their liability is restricted only to the shared loan”.

Whether a guarantee lets you buy with a smaller deposit is up to the bank, and it does not remove the Reserve Bank’s rules for the bank as a whole, and the bank still tests whether you can afford the loan. If your deposit is small, compare it with the other routes in our low deposit guide, and see how deposits and LVR interact in our LVR guide.

Before you accept family help

• Decide whether it is a gift or a loan, and put it in writing.
• Tell the bank. Gifts need evidence; loans need the bank’s approval and may count against you.
• Get independent legal advice, separately for the helper and for you. ANZ makes it mandatory for guarantors.
• If you buy with someone, write a property sharing agreement before settlement.
• Think about what happens if a relationship ends, someone loses their job, or the helper needs the money back.

Our saving a deposit guide covers the rest of the deposit picture. Rates as at 10 November 2026; test rates confirmed July 2026.

Questions people ask

Can my parents gift me a house deposit in NZ?

Yes. Banks accept gifted deposits with evidence. BNZ says you will need something like a gifting certificate showing the money is a gift and does not need to be paid back.

Is a family loan treated the same as a gift?

No. ANZ says a loan documented with a Deed of Debt must be approved by the bank in advance, and BNZ says regular repayments to family may be included as an expense in your application.

What are the risks of being a guarantor?

BNZ says a guarantor is responsible for some or all of the loan if the borrower falls behind, and their home may be sold to repay it. ANZ says independent legal advice is mandatory before a guarantee.

Can two friends get a First Home Loan together?

Two or more buyers can apply with a combined income cap of $150,000 (Kiwibank, accessed 10 November 2026), if they meet the other rules. See our First Home Loan guide.