To Buy or To Rent.... That is the question 

May 2013 saw property transactions rise to 89,050 up from 75,350 the previous May, a increase of 137,000.

These figures would make us believe that buying a house is getting easier and the property market is on the up, but is it?

These figures don't tell us who is buying these properties and with wage increases still very weak compared to inflation and house price growth coupled with record low interest rates keeping borrowing low, it would be easy to think FTBs were back in the running, however with lending criteria stricker than ever and the average house price five times the average wage as well as 20pc+ deposits needed, it could be fair to say that FTBs are still no closer to getting on the property ladder.

The buy-to-let market on the other hand is on the increase this is the first time since the 60s that more people have been in private rentals than living in local authority housing.

An estimated 17pc of UK households are now in Private rental accommodation that's approx 8million people with almost 1/2 of these renters over 35 and a 3rd with children.

So is buying really still the dream we all aspire to? The UK as a whole has a culture of owning your own home, however just across the water France and Germany have an opposite mindset where renting is the norm seeing the average tenancy signed for 5yrs+, so is renting the way forward for the next UK generation? Let's weight up the options.

Buying

Owning your own home can offer stability as most people stay in a property for many years, but this option also offers less flexibility should your circumstances change, redundancy is a reality for everyone and should the worst happen, you could be stuck with a house on the market and increasing mortgage arrears.

On the flip side, should you need a few extra ££s each month, as a home owner you can rent out a spareroom to a lodger, something tenants in a rental property would not be allowed to do.

Then there's the costs, your home will need regular maintenance and of course the dreaded unforeseen problems such as a broken down washing machine or even a new boiler, all expenses that you may not have budgeted for but will need to be covered.

Owning your own home does offer investment for the future depending on the type of mortgage you have and as long as house prices stick or grow, you can also relax and live in your home how you wish, you can decorate,put up pictures and even have a family pet, in most cases tenants are tied to tight restrictions in these areas.

Finally, but by no means the end of the pros and cons, is the cost, FTBs will be faced with a big initial outlay including deposit, mortgage fee, surveys, stamp duty (house prices £125k and over) and not forgetting the estate agents cut.

Renting

Renting is no longer frowned upon as a 'poor' option as it may have been in the past, with the number of landlords increasing the availability of good quality affordable homes is changing the view of renting and giving young professionals and families the homes they currently wouldn't be able to get a mortgage for.

Renting offers many options including trying a new area for a few months before committing to buy there, flexibility and freedom to move around with work or to upsize or downsize as needed.

The finances stack up in rentals favour too, the initial outlay is minimal compared to buying, a 6week deposit, 1st months rent and agent fees is all a renter needs to budget for. But renting means you don't have the property at the end and money that could have been paid towards your mortgage is actually paying someone else's.

But as a tenant you save on the maintenance costs, broken appliances and general repairs are a cost that would fall to your landlord not you and the set amount of rent being paid each month will make it easy to budget and put away savings that you know won't be 'dipped into' by unforeseen expenses.

More and more people are renting so is it really better to rent or buy? The page is still unwritten for that chapter