Housing in Britain

In Great Britain, families prefer to live in houses rather than flats. Over 70% of people live in flats. About 35% of people own the houses they live in, or buy them with money borrowed from a bank or building society.

There are different types of housing in Britain. Terraced houses are attached to each other in a long row. They are usually found in towns and cities and many were built in the 19th or early 20th century as houses for workmen. Today, Victorian terraced houses are very popular city homes. In earlier times, terraced houses were also called town houses. These have three of four stories and very large rooms, and town houses are now very expensive and fashionable.

In the 1930's a large number of semis were built. They share a central wall. Typically, a semi has a small garden in front of it and a fence divides a larger garden at the back. Semis are still built where land is expensive.

A detached house has land round it. More and more modern homes are detached, although in areas where building land is expensive, the houses may be very close to each other.

Country cottages are often old stone buildings which were part of a farm. Some country cottages are very old and they may have a thatched roof. Today many people who work in the cities buy cottages so that they have a place to go for the weekend.

A bungalow is house where all the rooms are on the ground floor. As there are no stairs, many older people dream of going to live in a bungalow when they retire.

A block of flats. In the 1950s and 1960s local councils cleared a lot of slums in the inner city areas and knocked down terraced houses in very poor areas. Block of flats or tower blocks can vary from 3-5 storeys high up to 10-20 storeys high. Each storey contains 5 or 6 flats for families. But people don't like to live in them because there are many social problems.

The country mansion. Very few of the British live in country mansions. Today many mansions are used as restaurants, hotels, old people's homes, etc.

Many British people are lucky enough to live in their own homes, and the great majority of these have a small garden. However, housing is a problem in many cities. Many young people have to live in, or share, small one-room flats called bed-sitter, and the homeless are still a problem.

Task 1. What do we call:

1. a house in a raw of houses which are all joined together;

2. a house which stands alone and is not joined to any other;

3. a paved area near a house, used for eating outside;

4. a large country house with lands;

5. a low house, with a broad front porch, having either no upper floor or upper rooms set in the roof, typically with dormer windows;

6. a house joined to another house on one side only by a common wall.

Where Americans Live

In the Unites States, many people once lived in large two-and-three-story homes. Today many people would like to live in such dwellings, but most people can't. They don't have enough money to buy them or even to make the first down payment. So, many people rent from month to month.

But some Americans really want to live in a house of their own, so they build their own home or they buy a house that is situated in the vicinity where homes are cheaper. It is better to reside in a bad part of town, they think, than not to live in a house at all. Or they buy an old house and removed it. Then they decorate it with antique furnishings. Sometimes, they can make an old house look more beautiful than a new one.

Usually, it is not difficult for people to find an old home to buy. Many older people decide that they don't need a spacious home after their children leave. So they sell their house and move to a cozy apartment.

But when people move into a house, they sometimes have problems. Homeowners have to do their own maintenance. For example, if there is a problem with the plumbing, one can't ask the landlord or landlady to fix it. On the other hand, people can remodel their homes in any way they want without having to be afraid of being evicted by the owner. Overall, most Americans would probably prefer to live in a house rather than in an apartment.

Questions:

1. What is the main dream of Americans?

2. Why do people prefer to rent?

3. What do they do with the old houses?

4. What is better for the Americans people not to have a house or to live in a bad part of the town?

5. What are the advantages of living in private houses?

6. Where do older people prefer to live and why?

Task 1. Read the following newspaper advertisements. Choose the flat/room you like. Explain your choice.