To ask who chooses to pay rent rather than buy?

[fluffiphlox]

I am laid up at the moment and resorting to watching Homes under the Hammer etc. My query is who the dickens is choosing to pay £500 plus per month (some rentals are £1200+). Isn't this more than a mortgage? I'd be interested to know who renters are and why? Most of the properties are family homes rather than student lets etc so why would a 'grown up' choose to give their money to a landlord rather than service a mortgage?

I rent, but it's a secure council tenancy so the rent is far lower than a mortgage on the equivalent property in this area. I am in a position to buy it now, and it's something I thought about as the discounts under right to buy are quite generous now, but I've decided against it. It's a flat, not a house, so I'd still have to pay service charges, so there would still be ongoing costs even when a mortgage is paid off. And of course I currently have no ongoing costs of ownership, like repairs or home maintenance.

I don't have most of the disadvantages of renting, because of the secure tenancy - no danger of the landlord needing their property back, not being able to decorate, or having my home inspected. I have had to claim housing benefit at various times in the past, which wouldn't have been possible with a mortgage. It is a bit harder to move house compared to a private rental though, although there are schemes and I know people who have managed to move to new areas through housing swaps.

An elderly neighbour who bought under the right to buy has just had to sell her home, because she is going into a care home. So there is not even any guarantee that it would be an investment for my children.