# Finding a Home Expert

https://hienglishquiz.com/vocabulary/everyday-life-c2-renting-a-home-vocab

- CEFR: C2 (Proficient)
- Theme: Daily Life
- Words: 22
- Premium: no
- Locked: no

Finding a Home vocabulary for property in formal and literary language, including arrears, dispossess, squatter and tumbledown — words for the state of a…

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## Word list

* **arrears** /ərˈɪrz/: Money you now owe because you have fallen behind with regular payments. — “They're two months in **arrears** and the landlord wants them out.”
* **dispossess** /ˌdɪspəˈzɛs/: To formally take a home or property away from someone (formal). — “Families were **dispossessed** when the building was sold.”
* **squatter** /ˈskwɑtər/: A person who lives in an empty building without permission or paying rent. — “**Squatters** moved into the abandoned house last winter.”
* **encumbrance**: A legal claim or restriction attached to a property (formal/legal). — “The sale was delayed by an **encumbrance** on the title.”
* **domicile**: A formal word for the place where someone lives (formal/legal). — “The court asked for proof of his permanent **domicile**.”
* **abode** /əˈboʊd/: A formal or literary word for someone's home. — “Welcome to my humble **abode**.”
* **occupancy** /ˈɑkjəpənsi/: The act of living in or using a building or room. — “The lease begins on the date of **occupancy**.”
* **vacant possession**: The legal state of a property being empty and ready for a new owner or tenant to move in. — “The flat is sold with **vacant possession**.”
* **rentier** /ˈrɛˌtiər/: A person who earns income mainly from letting out property they own (formal, economics). — “Critics accused the **rentier** class of driving up housing costs.”
* **absentee landlord**: A landlord who owns a property but does not live near it or manage it directly. — “Repairs are slow because the flat has an **absentee landlord**.”
* **tenancy** /ˈtɛnənsi/: The period during which someone rents a property. — “The **tenancy** runs to the end of March and not a day more.”
* **squalid** /ˈskwɑləd/: Very dirty and unpleasant, usually through poverty or neglect. — “Families were living in **squalid** conditions with no clean water.”
* **salubrious**: Pleasant, healthy and good to live in (formal). — “They moved from a **salubrious** suburb to a livelier part of town.”
* **gentrified** /ˈdʒɛntrɪˌfaɪd/: Changed by wealthier people moving in and renovating an area that was previously poorer. — “The once run-down street is now fully **gentrified**.”
* **tumbledown**: Falling apart because of age and neglect (literary). — “An old **tumbledown** barn stood at the edge of the field.”
* **decaying** /dɪˈkeɪɪŋ/: Slowly rotting or falling apart over time. — “The **decaying** mansion had been empty for decades.”
* **uninhabitable** /ˌʌnɪnˈhæbətəbəl/: Not fit for people to live in. — “The flood left the ground floor **uninhabitable**.”
* **characterless**: Lacking any interesting or individual features; plain and forgettable. — “The new flats all looked identical and **characterless**.”
* **idiosyncratic** /ˌɪdioʊˌsɪnˈkrætɪk/: Unusual in a way that is particular to one person or place. — “The house had an **idiosyncratic** layout, added to over many decades.”
* **eclectic** /ɪˈklɛktɪk/: Made up of a mixture of different styles, ideas or things. — “Their home has an **eclectic** mix of furniture from different decades.”
* **bijou**: Small and stylish, often used to describe a tiny but attractive home (informal, from French). — “They sold their house for a **bijou** flat in the city.”
* **garret** /ˈɡɛrɪt/: A small uncomfortable room at the very top of a house. — “He wrote the whole book in a **garret** with one window.”

## Related

- Vocabulary library: https://hienglishquiz.com/vocabulary
- Section guide: https://hienglishquiz.com/vocabulary/llms.txt
