Renting versus Buying
Do you rent or buy? This depends upon your individual circumstances; you may only be planning to live in a particular area for a short time, your financial status may prevent you from buying a home or you may prefer to invest your savings in other types of investment.  The reasons are numerous.

One possible down-side to renting a home is that you are usually limited to the changes/improvements you can make. When you own a home you can make almost any changes you want (subject to local planning restrictions). In addition, when renting a property, you will not benefit from any increase in the property's value.

Rental Term
In many cases you can rent a property for a short term and then increase or extend the period later. This will give you the opportunity to evaluate the property and the area and assess it's suitability before committing to a longer rental contract. Property owners/agents are often prepared to negotiate on the rental term.

Payments
It is normal practice for rent to be paid in advance although this can sometimes be negotiated.