IELTS Writing Task 2/ Essay Topics with sample answer.
IELTS Essay # 308 - Advantages and disadvantages of living in a house compared with an apartment
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- Written by IELTS Mentor
IELTS Writing Task 2/ IELTS Essay:
You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
Some people prefer to live in a house, while others feel that there are more advantages to living in an apartment.
Are there more advantages than disadvantages of living in a house compared with living in an apartment?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
Model Answer 1:
Everybody dreams to have a comfortable and beautiful place to live in with their family that they would like to call "home". In fact, home is not just a dream, it is our fundamental right. But when it comes to choosing what type of place to live in, many people like to live in a house while others prefer an apartment. In my opinion, there are both advantages and disadvantages to living in a house or apartment, and the choice depends on our preference and capacity.
A house is a large accommodation facility that comes with many large rooms, garden, access to the rooftop, open space and so on. The owner can go up vertically to have more rooms or can plant trees whenever he wants. That's the kinds of freedom that make houses more desirable to most people. There is no restriction on how a landlord can design or paint the house or how large he wants the lawn to be. Finally, the price of land increases every year and investment in a house is profitable. However, these freedoms do not come cheap. The soaring real state price makes it impossible for most people to even think of owning a house in a city. Furthermore, the maintenance of a large house requires employees and money and the owner has to ensure the safety of the house on his own.
On the other hand, an apartment is a relatively modern accommodation arrangement for small families and are built by real state developers keeping modern facilities in mind. The customers can get everything readymade, sometimes even fully furnished rooms and kitchen. This eliminates the hassle of building a house and decorating it. The security and utility facilities are maintained by the building authority. However, an apartment owner has many restrictions, especially about how to renovate it, paint it, extent living areas or make more rooms. Besides, most flats have depreciation and not always a good investment.
In conclusion, choosing a perfect place to live is in not just about advantages or drawbacks. Preference, modern amenities, return on investment and economic power are also related.
Sample Answer 2:
Growing urbanisation has led to the lacking of space and thus a large number of people are opting to live in apartments. However, some people still prefer to live in a house. This essay explores the advantages and disadvantages of both these style of living before coming to a logical conclusion.
Till a few decades back, living in individual houses was the most common norm. This was not only due to the fact that land was easily available but also due to the size of the family. The extended family lived and worked together. The house was generally accompanied by a large garden and ample space for the children to play. Even today, people living in houses prefer to do so because they value their privacy and need their own space. They also argue that they can build and design the house layout as per their convenience. However, living in a house comes with a high maintenance cost and extra effort.
However, people living in an apartment does not have to spend much on maintenance. The maintenance is taken care of by society. There is a helpline number that you can call at any time of the day for any issue that you face. Besides, working parents also vouch for the safety of their children within such gated communities. The only discomfort faced by people living in apartments is the lack of privacy and space.
The choice of living in a house or in an apartment depends on factors such as availability, rental costs and need and hence a particular style of living cannot be deemed to be the better than the other.
[by Jayita]
Sample Answer 3:
A home is being considered as a paradise on the earth as it could be a destination after a hectic day. These days we have multiple options for the home, like an independent house or an apartment. Different people have different views on choosing a type of accommodation.
Firstly, let us look at the pros and cons of the house. An independent house is always considered as a status symbol. This could be one of the reasons that the majority of the film stars own a house rather than a flat. Another advantage could be; a personalised space is gained by living in a house. You are the owner of the area so you can change it as per your convenience. However, personal space could be quite expensive. It is known that houses are more expensive than an apartment. At times a house might not be a safe place to live. For example, it is not surprising to read news about murder and robbery in the villas these days.
Nevertheless, it is a fact that the apartment concept is widely accepted by society, so its benefits cannot be ignored. Though living in an apartment could be noisy sometimes, it is a safe place to live in. For instance, a thief would think twice before entering into a place where many people are living. Moreover, a security guard is easily affordable in an apartment compared to a house.
An apartment could be a good option for people who like to socialise more. For example, a conversation started with a simple hello, turns into a long hour chat. You tend to meet different kinds of people so there are higher chances of finding alike minded people in apartments. In this global world, people stay away from their families because of work. However, a party organised by the apartments secretaries could make people feel like celebrating festivals with families.
I believe, it is an individual's choice to decide a kind of place to live. However, being a very social person I would prefer to live in an apartment.
[by Naaz]
Sample Answer 4:
With the rapid population explosion, an increasing number of properties have been built in many bustling cities. However, a recent poll shows that people prefer dwelling in apartments than to living in houses. I also think that living in an apartment has more advantages though living in houses has some benefits as well.
As for hunting an ideal vocation, living in an apartment near the commercial centre is the best choice. First, we are offered more choices on transportations and we can save time on commuting. Moreover, we don't need to worry about any housebreaking burglary when leaving for a certain time, since our apartments are protected by the management company. Furthermore, there are fewer cockroaches and mosquitoes if we live on higher floors.
Nevertheless, people who tend to live in a house have a desire to enjoy the tranquillity. We are given more free space such as rooms, car parking, and garden. In the meantime, we can also invite friends to hold a big party without worrying that may bother the neighbours.
However, when living in an apartment, it's hard for us to rent a parking spot. We need to pay parking fee monthly which costs a considerable amount of income. However, it's stressful for the middle-class family to buy a house since it's pricey.
All in all, it depends on personal current situations to consider whether we should buy a house or an apartment, but in my opinion, I have to say the apartment is more suitable for people who live in a modern city.
[ Written by – Shirley ]
Sample Answer 5:
People have different opinions and choices about their living places, as some choose to live in a house while others prefer to live in an apartment. The following essay will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of living in a house compared to an apartment, but I believe that having a house has more benefits than drawbacks.
For certain reasons, some people choose not to purchase a landed house. In common, houses have a larger space than a condominium or apartment, which means that it needs more time for the house owner to do the cleaning. As people get busier these days they have lesser time for cleaning activities, so they choose to live in an apartment. Secondly, there are more maintenance works to do for people who live in a cold area, especially during the winter season. For instance, it is mandatory for house owners to clear the pedestrian way which passes through their houses by shovelling the snow. This activity consumes a lot of time and energies, therefore people try to avoid it by living in a flat. Again owning a house increases many responsibilities which flat owners can mostly avoid. Finally, purchasing an apartment requires less money than building a decent house.
Despite all of the disadvantages mentioned above, many people believe that having a house brings a lot of benefits for them rather than owning an apartment. Firstly, it is a fact that the price of a detached house increases rapidly than an apartment. It means that house owners could get a higher capital gain when they plan to sell the house. Secondly, the living cost of living in a house is lower than in an apartment as they do not have to pay the monthly maintenance fee. In certain countries, governments also differentiate the electricity and water rate between landed houses and apartments, as they believe that living in condominiums would be counted as a luxurious lifestyle. Lastly, a certain belief that it is safer to live in a landed house, especially when a natural disaster occurs. For example, it is riskier for people who live in a highrise building to survive than those who live in a detached house during an earthquake. Furthermore, an apartment building is owned by a housing estate company and many flat owners live there together. This reduces the freedom for apartment owners. On the contrary, a separate house owner enjoys full freedom and do not have to live with many other families in the same building.
In conclusion, it is a fact that people have their own preferences and opinions about the type of properties that they would like to choose. Whichever the type of the property is, both have their own positive and negative aspects. I believe that the advantages of living in a house are greater than the disadvantages and I encourage people to save some money and purchase a house rather than planning to purchase an apartment.
[Written by - Darwin Lesmana]
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