时间:2019-01-13 作者:英语课 分类:2006年VOA标准英语(八月)


英语课

By Mil Arcega
Washington, DC
30 August 2006
 
watch Microhome report


The latest government reports indicate the U.S. housing market is cooling off. But builders say there's a mini-boom going on for a different kind of house.  VOA's Mil Arcega reports on new interest for a special category of "very small homes". 


-------



Large "McMansion" homes are languishing 1 on the housing market   
  
Large, million dollar homes were the rage at the height of the real estate boom.  But with many of the so-called "McMansions" languishing on the market, developers say the trend is towards smaller, more affordable 2 homes. 


Libby Crawley wanted to downsize from her 250-square-meter house but never thought she'd end up with something so small.


"When I first drove over and looked at it, I thought it was way too small.  There was no way I could fit into this house," she said.



Libby Crawley  
  
At only 65-square-meters, Crawley's microhome is about one-third the size of the average American home.  But Crawley says not only was the space more than adequate for her needs, there was also another surprise.


"Heating and air.  Actually my utility costs are probably less than $100 year 'round."


Although microhomes represent a tiny fraction of new home construction, builders say the category is one of the fastest growing trends in housing.  


 
Tim Russell
  
Tim Russell is the founder 3 of V2 World, which specializes in prefabricated building designs. "Although we have historically been lower than the median price of homes in America, over the last four years our prices have increased two and three-fold."


Russell's company can deliver a 67-square meter, energy efficient home, complete with furniture and appliances for under $150,000.  It's an attractive deal for price-conscious consumers who believe $230,000 is too much for an average house.


Designer Joe Herzog says the secret to success is making small homes feel large. "It's about efficiently 4 using space.  And it comes down to not only room spaces, but drawer sizes."


After more than a year in her new home, Libby Crawley admits it's not for everyone. "I think that a person would have to be someone who likes to live simply.  For me, it hasn't been a sacrifice in as far as the quality of my life."


The Small House Society, which promotes small housing solutions, says about a thousand new homes measuring less than 50 square meters have been built since the group was founded in 2002.



a. 衰弱下去的
  • He is languishing for home. 他苦思家乡。
  • How long will she go on languishing for her red-haired boy? 为想见到她的红头发的儿子,她还将为此烦恼多久呢?
adj.支付得起的,不太昂贵的
  • The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
  • There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。
n.创始者,缔造者
  • He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
  • According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说,罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。
adv.高效率地,有能力地
  • The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
  • Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。
学英语单词
absolute amount of skewness
adjustable handle
after contraction
airoperated
albolene
andreasen pipet(te)
antimony iodide
apiofuranoses
application of mathematics
arteriae dorsalis penis
autochthonous species
bad'un
big as life
celaenorrhinus kurosawai
coiler can
coldjunction
commercial autopilot
concentful
copepods
crown competition factor
cuspate
cymbals
direct access hashing
domain transit
domiciled draft
EEC European Economic Community
enfeebles
evitable
evol
fetal body
fragilaria oceanica
fudgily
galactosephosphates
Gauri
gelled patterning and gilding
genus dovyaliss
george washington bridges
geosim
Haboro-gawa
hornblende akenite
hughe
hypothenuse
ingratiate
initial index of refraction
input terminal
integrity monitoring of containment
irinotecan
Itxassou
katibs
Kitonga
Kodingauk
laboratory automation system
lpci flow
Mandab Strait
matrix tree theorem
mean cell transfer delay
method of simple structure
molybdenum tetrasulfide
multinational corporation
neccc
network-neutrality
no-bake process
noncoherent radiation
nonentanglement
nonheaded
os coccygis
outgross
overuse causing disease
paint staining
passengers transport regularity rate
peak absorption coefficient
Pourcieux
prehnites
Pseudocyclograpta
redias
riner
rouennais
sample program listing sequence
sand dollar
scobiform
scotomy
seismic wave path
sergeant aviator
series modality
sod formation
soil necrophagous animal
soporus
source of power
sub-woofer
submillimeter
synchro resolver repeater
Thalictrum chelidonii
total stocks
triple point of equilibrium hydrogen
ultra-low weight portable power-driven sprayer
unenforceable reform
unknottedness
urge on
value securities
vertical delay multivibrator
vlaho
zirconium trichloride