A hand up onto the property ladder

Matthew Partridge explains how parents can help their children buy their first property, and the the potential risks involved.

With property prices at record levels, especially in London, more and more first-time buyers are getting help from their parents to get on the property ladder.So how can parents help their offspring buy their first house and what are thepotential risks?

Until recently, several banks allowed parents to guarantee their offspring's mortgage, by pledging to make upany shortfall in payments. That has changed over the last year, but the small challenger bank, Aldermore, still offers a 100% mortgage deal with a guarantee.

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Dr Matthew Partridge
Shares editor, MoneyWeek

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.

He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.

Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.

As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.

Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri