Types of Houses in Belarus (answers)

Types of houses that we can live in

Many centuries ago people lived in caves, than technologies and architecture went forward and nowadays we have all possibilities to choose any type of housing we want.    

F or those who appreciate quiet life in the country it can be small cozy cottage or even large farm house or luxurious mansion. The advantages of living in such houses is that you have your own land where you can grow fruit and vegetables, make flowerbeds and plant beautiful flowers, lay out an orchard, etc. You can also build some outhouses like a green-house, a garage, a tool shed or an arbour. But the greatest disadvantage of living in a farmhouse or in a cottage, in my opinion, is that it takes much time to get to the nearest town, for example to our office, or to the supermarket to buy products, for children and youth to school, college or university to get better education, as it is known that in Belarus, for instance, the best educational establishments are in big cities, but if you have a car it isn't a problem for you. 

However, people are trying to live in the city or at least somewhere at the suburbs, as there are all the advantages of both city and country life. In Europe there is such type of housing that is called semi-detached house, or duplex, as Americans call it. Living in this house is cheaper than in the mansion and you always have a neighbor to give you a helping hand, but also you neighbor can disturb you from time to time. In Belarus semi-detached houses are not well spread, as people choose to live in townhouses. Actually they are practically same, but in this case you have to share not only one wall with your neighbor, but you have neighbors on both sides of your house, still it is rather good to live in a townhouse, as you have your private territory and entrance hall. 

If you want to live in the city with all the advantages and disadvantages of busy city pace, you, certainly can choose a flat in a block of flats. It is considered to be the cheapest type of dwelling, but it depends on many factors from size (one-roomed, two-roomed, thee-roomed and etc.) to location (city center or outskirts, disposition of metro stations and city parks). Besides all the advantages of living in a block of flats, unfortunately we should speak about the convenience of living in such a big house, as in this type of housing you have neighbors everywhere, and your peaceful life depends on them. However mainly people live in flats and disadvantages don`t bother them, as they have possibility to get all modern conveniences from housing services.

In the end I'd like to add that there are many types of housing and all the people have the right to choose where to live. 

Find in the text and write down all types of houses.

Match the words to their definitions.

Answer the following questions.

1. What are the advantages of living in the country?

2. In what types of houses do people live in the country?

3. What is the greatest disadvantage of living in the country?

4. Where do most Belarusian people prefer to live?

5. What is the difference between semi-detached houses and townhouses?

6. What is the cheapest type of dwelling in the city? What does the price depend on?

7. What are the advantages and disadvantages of living in a block of flats?

8. Where would you personally prefer to live: in the country or in the city, in the cottage or in a flat? Explain why?

What are the differences between houses in Britain and Belarus?