h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

These are a very good way to rent, as they are cheap, well looked after, the older houses are big with big gardens. The council come round and do all the things that landlords are supposed to do like fit smoke alarms (although in stupid places) and check the gas appliances. They check the houses every five years to see what maintainance needs doing, and if anything goes wrong they are normally fixed fairly quickly. They are let unfurnished, so you'll need furniture, and probably carpets as well, but it's a secure tenancy, so no need to worry about being kicked out for no reason. If you're an OAP they will even decorate the rooms on a cycle of a couple of years.
Unfortunately there is normally a big waiting list for houses, and they'll fit you into a flat until one comes up, but the wait is worth it, even though it can take up to 10 years. The area you get can only be chosen very vaguely, so you get what you're given, but apart from that the council can be a very reasonable landlord. So no horror stories here, sorry about that.