9. Phoning a Landlord

Angela is a student at university. She is looking for a room to rent. She saw an advertisement and has decided to phone the landlord.

• Hello. 678 5423.

• Hello. I saw your advertisement for the room.

• Oh, oh yea. That’s right.

• I wonder if you could give me some more information?

• Yea, well, well what would you like to know?

• I was wondering … Er… What’s the rent?

• 35 pounds a week.

• And what does that include?

• The room, obviously. It’s your own room. You don’t have to share. It’s a single room. You share the bathroom and you can use the kitchen, but there is no meals included.

• Right, uhm… and what about heating?

• No, no you don’t have to pay for that. There is central heating in all the rooms, so there is nothing extra to pay there.

• Oh, lovely, and do you want the rent weekly? Is there a deposit?

• You have to pay weekly, on a Monday. And there’s a one-week deposit, payable in advance.

• Right, that sounds fair. Are there any particular house rules, you know, that I’ve got to keep to?

• How do you mean?

• Well, like what about guests and hours?

• Oh yea, well you can come and go as you want, of course, but you must pay a deposit for the front door key. That’s separate from the other deposit, I’m afraid.

• I see.

• As for guests, they should be out by eleven o’clock. We don’t like to say that, but we’ve had a bit too much trouble, so we have to say it.

• Right. Is it quite near public transport?

• Oh yes. Five minutes to the tube station, and the bus stop is just round the corner with buses into town every ten minutes or so.

• Lovely, it sounds very interesting. Do you think I could come and have a look at it this evening?

• Yea, of course. I’ll give you the address. Now, it’s 35, Chestnut Avenue, Walton. How’ll you be coming?

• By car.

• Well, it’s just by the police station and the library.

• Yes, well I know it. If I come about eight is that all right?

• That’s fine. Could you tell me your name?

• Angela Smiley.

• Right. I’ll see you around eight. Goodbye.

• Bye-bye.

10. Finding out the House Rules

• Well, it’s a lovely room. It’s quite a nice size.

• Oh, yes. It’s a good-sized room and it’s well-furnished.

• Yes, I can see that. Is there anything that I should know?

• Well, I don’t allow the cat to go upstairs at all.

• Oh, not at all.

• No, absolutely not. I don’t like cats upstairs. And I don’t allow people to smoke in bedrooms.

• Oh, no, no. I agree with that. I don’t smoke anyway.

• And I don’t allow people to stick pictures up on the walls with sellotape. Well, you see, when you take the pictures down the sellotape leaves a mark on the paper.

• I see.

• And there are just two more things if you don’t mind. If you do go out, would you please, remember to close the window?

• Right, I’ll do that.

• And there is the kettle here, as you can see. But when you boil the kettle, could you, please, put it on the floor and not on the chest of drawers?

• Oh, I see. Does it make a mark or something?

• Yes, it would probably leave a mark.

• Oh, right. I’ll do that then.

• Is … is that all right?

• Well, it sounds very fair. Thank you very much.

• Yes, all right. Good.

What do we call “home”? Read the opinions of different people and express your point of view building up a conversation with your partner: