Your home is a common topic in part one of the IELTS Speaking test. So you might be asked, “What do you like about your flat?”
Let’s talk about how to give a great answer to this question, including 10 good band-seven answers (go straight to the answers here).
Flat vs Apartment
In the USA and most of the world, they use ‘apartment’ for a home that shares a building with many other homes. In the UK, they use the word ‘flat.’
For this question, you can use either word. They’re both good English, suitable for IELTS.
What You Can Talk About
Here are some things you might like about your flat:
- The size (large, spacious, cozy, cramped, 70 square feet, many rooms…)
- Your bedroom
- The living room
- The kitchen
- The garden or balcony
- The view
- The furniture and decor (stylish, pretty, relaxing, beautiful, minimalist, airy, comfortable…)
- Your flatmates
- The price (affordable rent or you bought it at a good price)
- The location (center of town, near the metro, close to nature, near your work…)
- The neighborhood (nice people, convenient, quiet, great shops…)
- Anything else that comes to mind
Use the Three-Step YES Method
For your part-one answers, you want to speak for just 10 or 20 seconds.
So, not too short and not too long.
Say the first thing you can think of, try to answer fluently (without hesitation) and don’t ramble (talk and talk and talk).
You can practice using the three-step YES Method for all your part-one answers. Just say:
- Your answer (say what you like best)
- Explain your answer (say why you like that thing) or add a few more details
- Stop talking (wait patiently for the next question)
Example Answers
Let’s look at 10 great answers to this question about your flat. Read through them for ideas about your own answer.
Location
1. I really like the location of my apartment. It’s quite close to the center of my city, so I can easily walk to the central area to go shopping or to meet my friends.
View
2. Well, my flat has a wonderful view of a park that’s filled with trees and grass and birds. I really like that. I like to enjoy the view while I drink my coffee in the morning.
Bedroom
3. I like so many things about my apartment. But the thing I like most of all is my bedroom. It’s very cozy and beautifully decorated, with an incredibly comfortable bed.
Affordable
4. I like how affordable my flat is. The rent is very good for the area. I got a really good deal when I moved in a few years ago.
Kitchen
5. Well, I’m an avid cook so my favorite room is definitely the kitchen. It’s big and bright and clean, with excellent tools and equipment for cooking any dish I like.
Neighborhood
6. I really like my neighborhood. I have many good friends living nearby, and there are great shops and other convenient things nearby. I love living there.
Flatmates
7. I have terrific flatmates. We all get along so well, and we’re really good friends. Everyone is very respectful of everyone else’s space and possessions. I think I’m very lucky.
Garden
8. My apartment shares a garden with two other apartments in my building. It’s small but very pretty, with a nice grassy area that’s perfect for relaxing on sunny days.
Furniture
9. I love the furniture in my flat. I’ve been carefully collecting really elegant sofas and cabinets and tables for many years now. And I’m really proud of how good it all looks.
Living Room
10. My favorite room is the living room. There’s a huge comfy sofa there, with a wide screen TV, where I can recline and spend hours watching movies or playing computer games.
Your Turn To Try
Give this question a go yourself.
If you have a voice recorder, turn it on and ask out loud, “What do you like about your flat?” or “What do you like about your apartment?”
Afterward, listen to your recording, and then do it again. Try to improve your answer a little each time.
This is a wonderful way to prepare for part one of your IELTS Speaking test.
