Despite new figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors showing house prices have recovered by ten per cent since hitting a low in April 2009, mortgage lending remains tight and many prospective house buyers still prefer to rent, according to one market observer.

Jon Brown of change of address service iammoving.com said that 2010 is therefore set to be the "year of the landlord and the letting agent" as more households put their aspirations to buy on the back burner until financial conditions improve.

He added that a move towards renting for the longer term would bring the UK into line with countries like Germany, where letting residential property is much more commonplace.

"This change in current values, both financial and philosophical, will lead to a more general approval of the idea that a rented house can be a home," Mr. Brown commented.

According to Nationwide, the average UK house cost £161,320 in February.