Buying your first home used to follow a familiar script. Save a deposit, meet a partner, combine your incomes and buy together.

For a growing number of buyers, that script no longer fits.

House prices remain far beyond what many single salaries can support, people are settling down later, and buying alone can mean waiting years longer. So first-time buyers are considering another route: purchasing with a friend, sibling or other family member.

Research from online mortgage broker Mojo Mortgages, reported by Financial Reporter, found that 52% of prospective buyers had considered or would consider buying with a non-romantic partner. The figure rose to 61% among Gen Z.

It sounds like a practical answer to an affordability problem. In some cases, it can be. But buying a property with a mate is not a slightly more expensive version of sharing a Netflix account. It is a long-term legal and financial commitment.

Why buying alone has become so difficult

The basic problem is borrowing power.

Financial Reporter says Mojo’s 2025 applicants included slightly more sole buyers than joint applicants. Sole buyers represented 53% of applications, while joint applicants accounted for 47.5%.

But those buyers were not competing with equal financial firepower.

According to the figures reported, joint applicants borrowed £301,000 on average, compared with £203,000 for sole applicants. That is a 48% difference.

The average deposits were also very different. Joint applicants put down around £97,000, compared with £68,000 for sole buyers.

That gap explains the appeal. Two incomes can support a larger mortgage. Two people can build a deposit faster. Council tax, utilities, repairs and insurance can all be divided.

For somebody priced out on one salary, co-buying may turn an impossible purchase into a realistic one.

The 52% figure needs some context

This is where the wording matters.

The broader 52% figure covers people buying with a non-romantic partner, such as a friend or family member. Mojo’s published survey page separately says nearly 18% would consider buying specifically with a close friend, rising to 22% among 18 to 24-year-olds.

Those are not contradictory figures. They measure slightly different groups. One includes family members and people who have already considered the idea, while the narrower figure asks specifically about buying with a close friend.

It is still a meaningful trend, but headlines can make it sound as though half of Britain is preparing to buy a semi-detached house with their best mate next Tuesday. The underlying result is more nuanced.

What co-buying could change

These advantages are real. But every benefit has a matching risk.

The mortgage belongs to both of you

With a joint mortgage, each borrower is normally responsible for making sure the mortgage is paid.

If your co-buyer loses their job, refuses to pay or simply disappears, you cannot tell the lender that you paid your half. Missed payments can affect both borrowers and put the property at risk.

You are not only judging whether your friend is reliable today. You are tying your housing, credit record and future borrowing options to what they may do years from now.

The arrangement can also affect future plans. If one owner later wants to buy with a partner, their existing mortgage commitment may reduce what they can borrow. If one person wants to sell and the other wants to stay, somebody needs enough money and mortgage capacity to fund a buyout.

Joint tenants or tenants in common?

In England and Wales, joint buyers usually choose how the beneficial ownership will be held.

As joint tenants, the owners have equal rights to the whole property. If one owner dies, their interest normally passes automatically to the surviving owner or owners.

As tenants in common, each owner can hold a separate share. Those shares can be unequal, which may suit friends who are contributing different deposits or paying different amounts towards the mortgage. A person’s share does not automatically pass to the other owner when they die and can be left through a will.

HM Land Registry says a trust deed, often called a declaration of trust, may be used to record each owner’s share. A conveyancer can explain how the ownership should be structured for the buyers’ circumstances.

The agreement you need before collecting the keys

The difficult conversations should happen before the purchase, not after somebody announces they are moving out.

• How much is each person contributing to the deposit?
• What percentage of the property will each person own?
• How will mortgage payments, bills, repairs and improvements be divided?
• What happens if one person cannot pay?
• Can either owner rent out their room?
• What happens if a partner moves in?
• How will a buyout price be calculated?
• What happens if one person wants to sell and the other refuses?
• How long should either owner have to arrange refinancing?
• What happens to each share if an owner dies?

A declaration of trust and a separate cohabitation agreement can record these decisions. Buyers should take independent legal advice because the right wording depends on their ownership, contributions and plans.

Is buying with a friend a good idea?

It can be, if both buyers are financially compatible, the property works for both of them, and the legal agreement covers what happens when life changes.

It is a bad idea if the purchase only works because everybody assumes nothing will ever go wrong.

Before buying, compare credit histories, incomes, debts, spending habits and future plans. Run the numbers for one person temporarily covering the full payment. Discuss relationships, relocation, children, job changes and selling. None of that is romantic, but neither is a repossession notice.

Co-buying is not proof that first-time buyers have discovered a clever new shortcut. It is also evidence of how far housing affordability has moved beyond a single ordinary income.

The biggest risk is not buying with the wrong person. It is buying without agreeing how you will eventually stop owning together.

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Sources and further reading

• Mojo Mortgages: First-time buyer sentiment survey 2026. Survey conducted by Censuswide in April 2026 using a sample of 1,000 UK first-time buyers.
• Financial Reporter: Over half of first-time buyers would consider buying with friends to get on the ladder.
• GOV.UK: Joint property ownership.
• HM Land Registry: What kind of joint ownership do I have?.
• Featured image: Kindel Media via Pexels.

Written by Aren Deu | The Anxious Investor