If you're even late by hours, the owner can kick you out because you have defaulted. You have no ownership rights, no property, no place to live. Everyone has some financial emergency in their life. So that business about having 6 months of income in savings won't help you. It could easily be more than that amount of money.

--- With Rent to Buy you rent a newly built home at approximately 20% below the market rate for up to five years (exact period of time varies by property)

During that time period you have the option to buy the property or to buy part of the property under a Shared Ownership scheme

When you get to the end of the time period you either have to buy part of the property or leave

http://hoa.org.uk/advice/guides-for-home...

(I am assuming you got it the right way round, and were not asking about buy to rent!)

It means you are being ripped off.

You will have all the responsibilities of ownership without any right until the last payment is paid.

You can be evicted. If the owner dies, his heirs inherit the property. You get zilch, nada, nothing, same if you die; the property reverts back to its owner. Your heirs get an eviction notice.

Rent-to-own is already outlawed on many states.

I'm not 100% sure in this but I have friends who are doing this. Instead of putting down a down payment you are 'renting' the home from the builders for a certain agreed period of time before you start paying into your mortgage. Not bad to consider doing if you don't have money for a down payment at the time you wish to buy a home.