I don't have an answer to the original question but thought I'd join in with other discussions in this thread.
I've been renting for nearly 20 years and will rent my whole life. I like the flexibility of being able to move around. I'm in my 11th place. I've been in house shares, I've been a lodger, and rented with 3 different partners.
I've only experienced one nob head landlord and that was in Whalley Range and it was a really cheap place, so you get what you pay for.
Me and my partner have lived in this current place for 3 years next month and have never met the landlord. If something needs doing or reporting, we send him a text and he arranges for someone to come around asap. This is only the second time I've gone through an agency. They gave us the keys etc, hence why we've never met the landlord.
The thought of buying a house and being tied to the same spot for years isn't for me. And paying all that interest to a bank. I'd much rather pay someone for a service who's trying to run their own business, and knowing that if I have a bad turn in life, I've not got a mortgage to pay for.
I have no kids and will never have kids and I'll never get married either, so there's non of that nonsense there either of buying a house, potentially getting divorced and everything that follows on from that.