People in Britain prefer houses to flats. Why? Because the British respect privacy and independence. The British pride in ownership is well known. An average Englishman likes to live in his own house. A house, a garden and a place to wash the car is a British ideal. About 64 per cent of houses in Britain are owned by people who live in them, the rest is owned by public authorities and is rented.
    A typical English house has a front and a back garden. It has two floors. On the ground floor, there is a hall, a toilet, a kitchen, a dining room and a living room (very often with a bay window). A staircase with a wooden banister and carpeted steps takes us from the hall to the private first floor with bedrooms and a bathroom. The bathroom is very often covered with a carpet. Single-glazed windows are still quite common, so a pair of woolen socks for night might be useful.
    The building material varies around the country - red bricks, concrete, stone, wood - but red brick contrast with white window frames is quite usual.

TERRACED HOUSES

     They are the cheapest ones. It is a style typical for older housing until 1910. These are houses joined together in long rows. They are often tiny and identical. Only the different colours of front doors and window frames can help you to identify each house.

DETACHED HOUSES

    They are much more expensive than a "semi", standing by themselves usually with a garden all around it. Most detached houses are to be found in affluent suburbs around cities where no industrial development is allowed. These areas, especially around large cities, are quite big and people have to travel to work by train or car every day. But living in a house is more important for them than a short travel distance to work.

HALF-TIMBERED HOUSES WITH THATCHED ROOFS