It’s not unusual at all these days for an individual, a couple or a family to not be on the housing ladder. It’s something that’s becoming more and more out of reach for many, with ever-rising house prices. 

While renting as a family may not seem like the obvious choice it actually can solve a lot of problems. If you have found the perfect school but can’t afford houses in the catchment area, or you would love a garden or extra bedroom but these come at a premium. A compromise can usually be found by renting instead of buying.

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It’s flexible

• You are never tied down to one place - if you want to move to a new area or street. If you need to relocate due to work or wish to be closer to family. Often life changes and you can quickly outgrow a property in these situations so renting is much less of a headache than if you own a house

• Although many families crave stability in their home, landlords are looking for stable tenants who are going to want to stick around for years to come - they don’t want to be swapping tenants every 12 months (as long as they are happy with you and the property!) So as long as you look after the property, that shouldn’t be a worry

More money

• There is money for the things that matter (family holidays, days out, etc) there are many costs involved with buying a house (stamp duty, solicitor fees, buildings insurance, plus the cost of selling-up and moving).

• When you own a home, it’s down to you to cover all home maintenance repairs - when you rent, these are your landlord’s problem (providing it wasn’t you who caused the damage).

• A big argument for buying a house is the equity that you’ll then gain, meaning that you’ll always have money behind you. That’s true, but homeownership doesn’t always equate to profits. The housing market hasn’t been at its most stable what with Brexit and now the Covid-19 pandemic - so who knows what will happen to the housing market? House values in your area could decrease and drag down the value of your home.

• Many rented properties are fully or partly furnished with white goods and appliances, so no need to spend lumps of cash investing in everything you need to run a household. You can also always swap anything you don’t like with your own belongings over time as long as you keep your landlord’s property safe.

Making a house a home

• A lot of renters say that a rented place is not their property, so it doesn’t feel like home. If a property’s interior isn’t quite to your taste, it’s always worth asking your landlord if you can make changes - the worst they can do is say no. Any good landlord will have landlord insurance with a landlord specific provider (they can compare policies over on CIA Landlord Insurance) Painting the walls a reasonable colour, changing light fittings, or fitting your own curtains are often allowed if you get permission first. There’s plenty you can do to make somewhere your own

• If you move somewhere new and find it needs a little TLC tenancy cleaners in South West London can help with a full end of tenancy clean if this wasn’t organised by a previous tenant.

• A house is only bricks and mortar - it’s who and what’s inside that matters. Fill your rented property with all the things you love - family photos, pictures and crafts that the children have made and it will soon feel like a home.

I hope that gives you some ideas of the benefits of renting, sometimes it just takes a change of mindset to realise how it could be the perfect solution for your family.

**This is a collaborative post.