Then you have the thorny problem of a loan from parents to a child, and a different sibling getting jealous about perceived favouritism.
It's a thorny issue alright, but there's also a reason why people keep doing it.
Money makes the world go round, and if you're wanting to buy a house or start a business, you'll need some of it. If you don't have enough of your own, then family who can help will almost always cut you a better deal than the banks.
It's just this issue which credi.com wants to help with. It's an online process to get everything written down and formalised when you're loaning money between friends and family.
It's launching here in New Zealand this month, and if it gets a response like it has in Australia, it'll do well.
So, there's obviously a lot of people mixing money and family.
I called Herald personal finance writer Diana Clement about the biggest issues people needed to watch, if they were getting into this situation.
We talked about the pros and cons of lending to family, the horror stories that can become reality, and other options for when lending isn't a good idea.
For the interview, listen to the podcast.
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