Buying a first home with friends or family in NZ
Two or more people can buy a first home together, and many do it to reach a deposit and a loan that one person could not manage alone. It also ties people together legally and financially, so the main points are worth understanding before starting.
Your next step
A home loan specialist can explain how lenders look at more than one buyer, while a lawyer covers who owns what, and there's no credit check to enquire.
It takes about 90 seconds, then we put you in touch with someone who can talk through your options, and there's no credit check to enquire.
How does a lender look at more than one buyer?
A lender looks at everyone on the loan, so each person's income, debts, credit history and spending all count. See how a student loan counts and how a credit history is read. The big one is liability: each person on the mortgage is normally responsible for the whole loan, so if a friend stops paying, the lender can ask the others for all of it.
How is the deposit shared?
Amounts don't need to match, which is what an ownership agreement is for. At the $720,000 median first-home price, split equally between 3 buyers, it looks like this:
- 5% deposit: $36,000 in total, about $12,000 each.
- 10% deposit: $72,000 in total, about $24,000 each.
- 20% deposit: $144,000 in total, about $48,000 each.
Can each buyer use KiwiSaver?
Yes, each buyer who qualifies applies through their own provider. The rules are the same for each person: at least 3 years of membership, a first home you intend to live in, and all but $1,000 may come out. The average first-home withdrawal in the year to 30 June 2026 was about $45,600. See the KiwiSaver withdrawal page.
How does the First Home Loan work with more than one buyer?
The First Home Loan needs a 5% deposit. For two or more buyers, as at October 2026, combined before-tax income over the last 12 months must be $150,000 or less, whatever the number of dependants, as listed on the Kāinga Ora First Home Loan page. Check the latest with Kāinga Ora or your lender. Each buyer needs to meet the scheme's rules.
What is the difference between joint tenants and tenants in common?
As joint tenants, everyone owns the whole home together, and if one owner dies their share passes automatically to the others. As tenants in common, each owner holds a share, equal or not, which goes to whoever their will says. Friends often choose tenants in common for that reason, and your lawyer can explain the effect of each.
If you're buying as a couple, our guide to joint tenants vs tenants in common for couples covers that.
What should be agreed in writing?
Lawyers generally advise agreeing things in writing before the offer, with each person taking their own legal advice. A co-ownership agreement usually covers who pays what, what happens if someone wants to sell or can't keep paying, and what happens if a relationship ends or someone dies.
What if a parent wants to help?
It might be a gift towards the deposit, a loan, being a co-borrower or, in some cases, offering security. Each affects the parent differently, so they often take their own legal advice. There is more on a gifted deposit.
Common questions
Can friends buy a first home together in New Zealand?
Yes. Two or more people can be named on the title and the mortgage, and who owns what is often settled in writing with a lawyer before the offer.
Can we each use our KiwiSaver?
Yes, if each of you qualifies. Each person applies through their own provider.
Can parents help without being on the mortgage?
Often yes, with a gift towards the deposit or in some cases security for part of the loan, and they often take their own legal advice.
What if one of us already owns a home?
That changes things. First home buyer schemes and the KiwiSaver first-home rules are built around people who have not owned before, with a second-chance route through Kāinga Ora in some cases, so raise it early.
Figures as at 5 October 2026
Sources: Kāinga Ora: First Home Loan; Kiwibank: KiwiSaver and your first home; Cotality: first home buyer report; IFAA: buying your first home in 2026.
Reviewed against Kāinga Ora, Kiwibank, Cotality and IFAA. This page is general information, not advice, and Online Mortgages is a referral service, not a lender.