So you think you want to rent? Take your pick

Once upon a time, the rental market was the repository of dingy properties where you wouldn't house a dog. But, says Liz Hodgkinson, that's all changed, with more rental properties of a higher quality than ever before

At the age of 21, I bought my first house. At the age of 33, my son, married with two children, is still renting.

At the age of 21, I bought my first house. At the age of 33, my son, married with two children, is still renting. In my day, you had to buy as soon as possible because there was simply nothing decent available to rent. But now, rental properties are often smarter, more spacious and cheaper than anything you could afford to buy. The great success of the buy-to-let revolution has meant that for the first time in many decades, renting in the private sector is becoming a viable long-term option.

At every stage of their lives, ever more British people are deciding that it could make more financial and lifestyle sense to rent than to buy. Because the rental market has become so competitive, there is now a vast choice of lovely properties on offer at bargain prices.

Very often, the monthly rental works out at less than mortgage repayments. My son and his wife are paying around £800 a month for a converted school hall in Islington, north London. Mortgage payments on the same property would come to at least twice that. And, when renting, there isn't a great lump of deposit to find, either.

Barry Manners of Chard Letting Agency says: "Over the past couple of years, people have become wary of putting a foot on the unstable property ladder and are realising they can get a wonderful deal on rental property. The choice of rental properties in London is now immense."

For young professionals, there are many advantages of renting over buying in today's market. There's the matter of a much smaller deposit to put down. Then, renting allows you to move in a matter of weeks, rather than waiting maybe a year to sell your house. Thirdly, maintenance is the responsibility of the landlord, who also pays any service charges and the buildings insurance.

Many young couples are now discovering that if they want to buy, they will have to exchange their immaculate, centrally located rented home for a dank, dark hole miles out.

Then, too, the process of moving is vastly cheaper if you are renting. When selling, you have to factor in the estate agents' fees, horrendous stamp duty, legal and removal costs. On even a modest sale price, this could easily add up to £20,000 straight down the drain. With a furnished flat, you don't even have to cart your furniture around.

Older people with families are also increasingly thinking about renting, for the sake of being in a beautiful home in a wonderful location. Letting agent Frankie Dixon of Cluttons, Haywards Heath branch, says: "We have many gorgeous properties which you can rent but not buy, because they are part of a country estate and will never be for sale. We have many business people renting who don't want to buy for a number of reasons. It may be that they are trying out a location to see whether they like the area, or they want to be able to move quickly if relocated. Having said that, our business tenants frequently stay for five or six years in the same house. Often, they rent because they can't find anything they like well enough to buy. Today's rental properties are in wonderful condition, with white goods, carpets and curtains provided."

A third, brand-new rental market is also coming on stream, that of the post-retirement age group. Clemmie Bailey, a director of upmarket agents Lane Fox, says: "Increasingly, people in their seventies and eighties see their future in renting: they have sold the family home, or given it to their children, and can't be bothered to buy again."

"This market is going to grow, as it makes so much sense. Older people like the security of a portered block with a lift, and they don't want to be bothered with maintenance or renovation. They don't want gardens. Typically, they like a two-bedroom flat in a cosy mansion block, where they can bring in all their bits and pieces and have their grandchildren to stay. The thing is, there are now rental properties nice enough for this market, which wasn't the case a few years ago."

Bailey believes the senior market is being fuelled mainly by fears over inheritance tax. "Our clients are determined not to leave everything they've worked hard for to the tax man. So they have downsized, given money to their heirs, and are living on the remainder of their liquid assets.

"If they should eventually have to go into a home, they know it's easier and quicker to terminate a tenancy than to have to sell a house to raise money for nursing-home fees. Homes owned by older people tend to be tired and dated, and can hang around on the market for a long time."

A fourth type of rental market emerging is that of foreign-home buyers. Those who buy their place in the sun, usually at a far cheaper price than anything comparable here, may just want a little lock-up-and-leave UK bolthole they don't have to worry about.

Annabel Smith, of Lane Fox in Basingstoke, says: "For whatever reasons people are choosing to rent, they are increasingly impressed by what they can get for their money. Capital prices have soared as rental prices have fallen, with the result that people can now end up renting properties way beyond their expectations. Many people who are turning to renting are finding it to be a refreshing experience. Ever more homeowners are realising they can make their money go further by selling up and renting."

And at a time when people are starting to question the whole business of home ownership, many investors are making the rental option more attractive and cost-effective than ever.