Your ideal home
IELTS Speaking Part 2 · cue card
Describe the kind of home you would like to live in in the future.
You should say:
- where it would be
- what it would look like
- who you would live with
- and explain why you would like to live there
You have one minute to prepare and should speak for one to two minutes.
Free account required for the live AI partner.
Band 7+ sample answer
About 232 words, roughly two minutes spoken. Use it for ideas and language, not to memorise: examiners notice rehearsed answers.
My ideal home would be a modest two-storey house on the edge of a medium-sized town, somewhere like Sreemangal, surrounded by tea gardens, but still within a couple of hours of a city by train.
I don't dream of anything huge or luxurious. I imagine a house with three bedrooms, one of which would be a study with a big window facing the hills. I'd like plenty of natural light and a flat roof where I could grow vegetables and herbs. Most importantly, I'd want a wide veranda at the front, because I have happy memories of sitting on my grandparents' veranda during the rain. I'd also try to make it environmentally friendly, with solar panels and a rainwater collection system.
I'd like to live there with my own family in the future, and ideally have my parents nearby, or even living with us, because I think it's important for children to grow up close to their grandparents.
The reason I'd prefer this kind of home is that I want a better balance between work and life. With remote and hybrid work becoming more common, you no longer need to live in a crowded capital to have a good career. Being close to nature, breathing cleaner air and having a bit of space would, I think, make me calmer and healthier, while a fast train would keep me connected to city opportunities.
Useful vocabulary
- modest
- not large or expensive
- on the edge of
- at the outer part of
- veranda
- a covered open area at the front of a house
- environmentally friendly
- not harmful to nature
- hybrid work
- working partly from home and partly in an office
- balance between work and life
- time for both job and personal life
Part 3 follow-up questions
- Is it better to rent or buy a home?
- Why is housing so expensive in big cities?
- Should the government build more affordable homes?
- How will homes be different in the future?
- Do people prefer living in houses or flats in your country?
Tip: in Part 3, give an opinion, a reason and an example, and consider another point of view. Aim for 3–5 sentences per answer.
How to practise this card
- Set a one-minute timer and write keywords for each bullet, not full sentences.
- Speak for two minutes and record yourself on your phone.
- Listen back: did you cover every bullet and the "explain" part? Note one phrase from the vocabulary list to use next time.
- Answer two Part 3 questions out loud, then try the card again with the AI Speaking Partner.