A new survey has revealed that more than four in ten – 43% – are relying on inheritance from home-owning parents during increasingly challenging economic times.

Despite basing their future financial security on their inheritance, only 30% say they have actually spoken with their parents about how much they are likely to inherit, according to research from Zoopla.

The property portal commissioned the study to help promote a property inheritance calculator that it has launched to help people calculate what financial support they could potentially get from the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ to purchase property.

Among Brits whose parents own a property, the average amount they expect to receive is just over £195,000, with the vast majority – about 98% – of this money coming from property inheritance alone.

Many respondents said that they had already made plans with inheritance they have not yet received. Almost six in ten – 58% – Brits expect to be able to move house, upgrade their home or pay off some or all of their mortgage as a result of receiving their inheritance. Of those, 36% are renting until they inherit, at which point they will buy to get on the property ladder, whilst 29% have gone as far as to purchase a home on the basis they will be receiving inheritance in the future to help pay their mortgage.

Zoopla’s Daniel Copley said: “With house value data now easily available to access online, it’s interesting to see that so many are using this, not just to get an idea of what their own home may be worth, but to get an idea of the sort of amount  they may get in terms of parental inheritance in the future. Whilst some may consider this a little cheeky, it’s actually really important to have an idea of what may be coming your way in future, so you can plan financially for the long-term, especially with regards to property decisions.

“The best advice is to have an open and honest conversation with your parents about this, but we know that most people – parents and kids alike – find the subject too difficult or awkward. As such, we’ve created a calculator for those curious about property inheritance, that gives them an idea of what they could receive, based on future home value, without the awkwardness. This is based on the actual estimated value of their parents’ home, as well as other factors such as how many siblings they have.”