III. Vocabulary. Find the words and expressions that mean:

1. had to close the business

2. a person who puts money into property

3. have been eager to leave

4. much better than our small garden

5. low hills covered in grass

6. to draft (a treaty)

7. ate grass

IV. Vocabulary. Paraphrase or explain the following phrases:

1. Property investor Richard Burrows, 40, is doing it in spectacular style.

2. ‘It has eight acres of grounds, a considerable improvement on our small Putney garden.’

3. He thinks Danny House can run successfully as a retirement home…

4. … Deloitte & Touche has now sold off the properties for a cool ₤ 20 million.

5. But, sadly, the two remaining properties … are being sold on the open market…

5. Grammar. Notice the use of the emphatic construction with the pronoun it:

_______________________________________

… it is not politicians who enjoy the Great Hall’s

portrait of Charles I but 35 retired residents…

_________________________________________

Make the following sentences emphatic as in the example:

Example: A mounting financial crisis forced the organization into liquidation.

It was a mounting financial crisis that forced the organization intro liquidation.

1. Richard bought Danny House.

2. Retired residents live now in the mansion.

3. The tranquil spot attracted him to such an unusual property investment.

4. Rachel’s mother is going to live in one of the apartments.

5. The two remaining properties are being sold on the open market.

6. Writing. Write an interview of Nigel Lewis, the author of the article, with Richard Borrows. Use the material of the article. Begin it as follows:

Property Mail: Retirement special

By Nigel Lewis

Eight country houses were sold off recently when their owner was forced into liquidation. Richard Burrows, a property investor, bought one of the houses and turned it into a retirement home.

– Mr. Burrows, how did you come to the idea of buying Danny House?

– I live with my family in Putney…

Text 2

Read the property advertisements from The Daily Mail. While reading, fill in the chart and do the exercises below.

R ectory Cottage,

Headley, Surrey,

₤875,000

A FLINT-FRONTED, detached, late Victorian former rectory once belonging to the local church, Rectory Cottage has been refurbished in neutral colours and, along with three bedrooms, has an annexe that is a games room and a granny flat. The cottage also has a swimming pool.

Lancasters: 01737 371700

The Church Rooms,

L avenham, Suffolk,

₤200,000

THIS used to be the community hall for this historic Suffolk village, half an hour by car from Colchester. It has planning permission to become a house and the sale will fund a replacement hall. Plans include two bedrooms, two reception rooms and a study. The hall, kitchen and toilets will become a kitchen / diner.

Clark & Simpson: 01728 724200

The Old Rectory,

B anningham, Norfolk,

₤600,000

A RAMBLING 17th century property that, until recently, belonged to a keen porcelain collector who bought it in the 1950s. The property remained untouched since then and now needs a substantial and probably expensive upgrade to drag it into the 21st century. There’s a maze of rooms downstairs and the upstairs, which is almost derelict, includes six bedrooms reached via a ladder.

Stratt and Parker, 01603 617431

	Rectory Cottage	The Church Rooms	The Old Rectory
Estate agency that sells the property
Location
Price
Type of the property
The time the building belongs to
Former owner of the property
The house plan

Exercises