Describe a home that you like but don't want to live in
IELTS Speaking Part 2 cue card with a full sample answer, a Band 9 model of the two-minute long turn.
The cue card
Describe a home that you like but don't want to live in
You should say:
- where it was
- what it looked like
- why you visited it
- why you don't want to live there
Sample answer
I'd like to describe a home that I genuinely admire but wouldn't actually want to live in - a large, traditional country house belonging to a friend of my family.
The house is nestled in a remote, rural village, surrounded by rolling hills and farmland, quite a distance from the nearest town. It occupies a beautiful but rather secluded spot, with no neighbours for miles around.
In terms of appearance, it's a truly stunning property. It's a spacious, old-fashioned two-storey house built of stone, with a charming tiled roof and large wooden windows. Inside, it boasts high ceilings, antique furniture and a huge fireplace in the living room, lending it a wonderfully cosy and characterful feel. It also has an enormous garden with fruit trees and a vegetable patch, as well as breathtaking views over the surrounding countryside.
I visited this house a couple of summers ago, when my family was invited to spend a weekend there. I remember being instantly captivated by its rustic charm and the peaceful, unspoiled natural setting all around it. It felt like stepping into another, simpler world.
However, as much as I admire the house, I wouldn't want to live there permanently, for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's simply too isolated for my liking; being so far removed from shops, restaurants and other amenities would feel inconvenient and, frankly, rather lonely. As someone who thrives on the energy and opportunities of city life, I think I'd quickly grow bored and restless in such an out-of-the-way spot. Secondly, an old house of that sort requires an enormous amount of upkeep, which would be both costly and time-consuming.
So while it's a beautiful place to visit and I relish the tranquillity for a short break, I've come to realise that I'm very much a city person at heart. It's the perfect example of somewhere lovely to admire but not to call home.
Reading a model answer is not the same as saying one. The sample above shows what a strong Part 2 answer sounds like. What it cannot tell you is how yours sounds — whether you hesitate, repeat the question back, or run out of things to say at forty seconds.
You can record an answer to this exact question and get it marked on fluency and coherence, lexical resource, grammatical range and pronunciation — the same four criteria the examiner uses.
Common questions
How long should I speak for in Part 2?
Between one and two minutes. The examiner stops you at two, so aim to still be talking at the ninety-second mark rather than finishing early — running out at forty seconds is the most common problem in this part.
What do I do with the one minute of preparation time?
You get one minute and a pencil and paper. Most candidates waste it writing full sentences they then read aloud, which sounds flat. Note a few keywords against each bullet instead, so you have four things to talk about rather than a script.
Do I have to cover all four bullet points?
They are prompts, not a checklist, and you are not penalised for skipping one. In practice they are the easiest way to fill two minutes, so covering them is usually the simplest way to keep going.
Does it matter if the story is not true?
No. You are assessed on your English, not on whether the events happened. Inventing detail is fine and often easier than recalling a real memory under pressure.
Model answers written and reviewed by The English All-in-One IELTS team. They are teaching models showing what each band looks like, not real candidate scripts.