What's sell-to-rent? It's the practice of taking a punt on a significant fall in house prices by selling up, moving into rented accommodation and buying back at either a lower price or higher spec. Why ouch? Because the fall needs to be significant enough to cover both rentals (and possibly storage) while you wait, and the cost of moving, which includes Stamp Duty, estate agency and solicitors fees, and all the other stuff that really adds up. And if you're wrong, and the market starts to climb again (unlikely, in the current climate - I know - but I've seen it happen before) then you're basically, well, screwed. I've seen this happen to people who have ended up very bitter about the market.

But that was then, this is now. Perhaps this time you could be lucky.

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