Till debt do us part: WA couples buying homes without planning for a break-up

Detailed summary

Buying a home together can be a bigger commitment than marriage, but new research reveals most aspiring buyers haven’t discussed what happens to their property if they split up.

West Australians saving for their first home are leaving some of their biggest financial decisions to chance, with new research revealing a third haven’t discussed what could happen if their buying arrangements fall apart. Just 13 per cent of WA respondents to a new survey had discussed what would happen to their property if a relationship ended — below the national figure of 15 per cent. The survey of 1015 Australians saving for their first property found 34 per cent of WA respondents had discussed none of the financial arrangements involved in buying together, compared with 20 per cent in Victoria. Busselton first-homebuyer Brody Ronald, 32, knows how much commitment it takes.

Opening of the article, excerpted from The West Australian. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.