Parents helping their adult kids with housing costs, Round Two

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Parents have provided billions of dollars to their adult children to buy homes in recent years. Now, it’s time to look at the cost to parents of helping their kids afford their mortgages.

A surge in mortgage rates in the past two years has added hundreds of dollars per month to the cost of mortgage payments for many households. The Stress Test personal finance podcast talks to some Gen Z and millennial homeowners about how they’re coping in this week’s episode, which drops Wednesday.

I’d like to hear from parents of young adults on this topic as well. Parents tackled the housing unaffordability problem by giving their kids money for down payments. To what extent are they helping with the mortgage unaffordability problem?

In search of answers to this question, I put together the following anonymous survey for parents who have provided housing-related financial help to their Gen Z and millennial children. That means young adults aged 20 to 40. Thanks in advance.

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Rob’s personal finance reading list

Birthday freebies

A list of free stuff available on your birthday from the likes of Starbucks, Tim Horton’s, David’s Tea and many more.

A report card on $10-a-day daycare

The federal government’s plan to have $10-a-day child-care available by 2025-26 gas already cut costs in half for parents in some parts of the country. Here’s a look at what’s happening with costs in various cities and regions.

Best breakfast sandwiches – a three-way smackdown

Get the best value for your fast food spending by checking out this comparison of breakfast sandwiches from A&W, McDonald’s and Tim Horton’s. A clear winner is chosen. Me, I have no opinion on breakfast sandwiches. Don’t eat ‘em because I don’t eat eggs in any form where their egg-ness can be detected. French toast is as close as I get.

The drip-pricing trap

All about drip pricing, a stealth way to raise prices. Airlines are a prime example – you buy a ticket, and then find you have to pay additional fees for the seat you want and to bring a carry-on bag. Food delivery servicers are doing it as well by offering more prompt service for an extra fee. I’m a huge fan of no-surprise all-inclusive pricing.

Ask Rob

Q: Do you know of any good software for an individual to track investment transactions for tax reporting purposes? I’ve been using QuickTax Tracker for 15 years, but it hasn’t been supported for about 10 years and I’m worried if it ever crashes I’ll be in big trouble. I have about 150 transactions.

A: I’m throwing this one open to readers. What apps, websites or software are you using to track your investments? Let me know at rcarrick@globeandmail.com

Do you have a question for me? Send it my way. Sorry I can't answer every one personally. Questions and answers are edited for length and clarity.

Tools, Explainers, Guides and Charts

The non-profit credit counselling agency Credit Canada has put together a program for newcomers to Canada on how to build credit. Here’s in introductory video, and here’s an overview of the program. Available in eight languages. Also check out the Newcomers’ Guide to Finances in Canada, by Globe personal finance reporter Erica Alini.

The Money-Free Zone

Shares of Walt Disney Co. recently hit a nine-year low, an indication of the troubles the 100-year-old company has had in adapting to changes in the way people consume media and spend money recreationally. Here’s a very cool graphic presentation of how Disney’s innovativeness as a company has helped it survive past challenges.

What I’ve been working on

• What to do about high-interest savings ETFs now that regulators have cracked down on them
• We may be at the peak for GIC rates – but what a peak it is
• As much we talk about financial fraud, too many people are getting sucked in

More Rob Carrick and money coverage

Subscribe to Stress Test on Apple podcasts or Spotify. For more money stories, follow me on Instagram and Twitter, and join the discussion on my Facebook page. Millennial readers, join our Gen Y Money Facebook group.

Even more coverage from Rob Carrick:

• 🎧 Catch up on Stress Test: Why millennials and Gen Z are Alberta-bound for a more affordable life • Rising interest rates brought pain for new homeowners – and opportunity for house hunters • Why more Canadians are choosing to be child-free or delay parenthood • Love in the time of inflation: How to manage rising costs when dating • You’re not bad at money – you’re suffering from money shame • Retirement might look different for Gen Z and millennials. Here’s how to plan for it • Recession-beating tips for the job market, housing, investing and the cost of life • Is the middle class dead for millennials and Gen Z?
• ✔️ The housing file: A house isn’t special. Get your head straight about the reality of home ownership • The good, the sad and the unaffordable: Saving for a home down payment in Canada’s big cities • Property taxes are popping in some cities – how worried should you be about other tax hikes? • Our other real-estate problem – people have too much wealth tied up in houses • Borrowers and savers, here’s how to time the eventual rollback of interest rates
• 📈 Investing: Canada's top digital broker is TD Direct Investing, with an assist from the TD Easy Trade app • 2023 Globe and Mail ETF buyer's guide part one: Canadian equity ETFs • For the ultimate in cheap investing, check out the Freedom .08 ETF Portfolio • Yes, there is risk in Canadian bank deposits for the unwary and complacent • CDIC covers bank deposits, but who protects your investments if your broker goes bust? • Answers to your questions about the low-risk ETF paying almost 5% • Happy fifth birthday to one of the all-time best investing products for everyday people • An investing strategy that wins cleanly over the long term by outperforming in bad years like 2022
• 💰 Your money: Mortgage holders, savers and GIC investors, it’s time to change your thinking on interest rates • How much debt is each generation of Canadians carrying, and how do you compare? • For the sake of their financial futures, young people should leave Toronto and Vancouver • This practical new spin on a savings account might just peel you away from your big bank • Rental fraud grows amid rise in fake, falsified tenant applications • Are Canadians worse off financially now than in the 1980s? • From groceries to auto loans, here’s how much more it costs to live right now • When saving for retirement, should you change your asset mix over the course of your career? • Do retirement income needs always rise alongside inflation? Not necessarily • When the bank suggests you lock in your variable rate mortgage, it has an angle