Hello, dear listeners（听者）. I have some special news to share with you today. We are launching（发射） a brand（商品） new podcast series（系列） on our channel called Eight Minute English. Guess what? We have a new companion（同伴） joining us for this journey. Please welcome Nathan.

  Thank you, Jessica. Hi, everyone. I'm Nathan. It's a pleasure（愉快） to meet all of you and I'm truly（真实地） excited to be part of this new series（系列）. It's a privilege（特权） to accompany（陪伴） all of you in this fresh（新的） learning adventure. And now I'll hand（传递） over the stage（舞台） to Nathan to dive（跳水） deeper into what you can expect from this podcast series（系列）.

  Thank you again, Jess. Each episode（插曲） of this podcast will focus（使集中） on topics that are practical（实践的）, relatable and mirror（反射） our daily（每日的） lives. We hope this eight minute podcast series will help you on this learning（学习） journey. And today our topic is renting（租） a place and asking about rental（租赁的） terms（术语）. So now we will listen to real conversations and we'll learn together. Let's get started.

  Hello. I saw your apartment ad（广告）. Is it still available（可利用的）? Yes, it's available. It's a two bedroom apartment. How much is the rent?

  It's five hundred dollars per（每） month. Utilities（实用） are not included. Is there a deposit（存款）? Yes, you need to pay a two hundred dollars deposit. All right. When can I see the apartment?

  How about tomorrow at three p.m.? Sounds good. See you then. Great. Now（现在） let's break down some of the vocabulary（词汇） from that conversation. Apartment.

  A place to live that's part of a bigger building. Example. My friend lives in a big apartment downtown（市中心区）. Rent. The money you pay to use something that belongs（属于） to someone else. Example.

  I rent a room near my school. Utilities. Services（公共服务） like water, electricity（电） or gas（气体）. Example. We pay for utilities every month. Deposit.

  Money you give as a promise（诺言） and get back later. Example. I gave a deposit when I rented my bike. Available. Something that is free to use or buy. Example.

  The book is available at the library. Now let's practice（练习） with the conversation. Repeat the sentence after you hear it. Hello. I saw your apartment ad. Is it still available?

  Hello. I saw your apartment ad. Is it still available? Yes, it's available. It's a two-bedroom apartment. Yes, it's available.

  It's a two-bedroom apartment. How much is the rent? It's $500 per month. Utilities are not included. Is there a deposit? Yes, you need to pay a $200 deposit.

  Alright（ 好）, when can I see the apartment? How about tomorrow at 3pm? Sounds good. See you then. I hope you found the repeat（重复） listening helpful（给予帮助的）. Let's dive into some discussion（讨论） questions about that conversation.

  Why does Lisa want to see the apartment? Lisa wants to see the apartment because she might（可以〔用于礼貌地提出建议〕） be interested in renting（租） it. What does John mean when he says utilities are not included? John means that the cost of services like water, electricity or gas is not part of the monthly（每月的） rent（租） and needs to be paid separately（分别地）. Okay（好）, before we finish, let's share some fun and easy facts about renting（租）. Did you know that New York City has over 200,000 more female（女性的） renters（租贷人） than male（男的） renters（租贷人）?

  In the USA, a landlord（房东） usually checks your credit（信用贷款） score（得分） before renting（租） to you. A good credit score can help you get a better apartment. San Francisco is one of the most expensive cities to rent in the USA. Some people even rent tiny（微小的） spaces called micro apartments to save（救） money. Now, let's answer some questions from our global（全球的） listeners（听者）. Our first question is from Maria in Madrid, Spain.

  She asks, "I listen to many English videos, but my English is not improving. What can I do?" "Listening is good Maria, but try to speak and write too. Practice makes perfect." We have a question from Abdullah in Cairo, Egypt（埃及（东北非国家））. He wonders（想知道）, "How often should I practice（练习） English?" Every day is best Abdullah. Even if it's just a few minutes, regular（规则的） practice helps a lot. We are happy to receive（收到） your feedback（[无]回授） and questions. Please feel free to drop（使落下） your questions in the comments（评论） below and we'll address（写名字地址） them in upcoming episodes（插曲）.

  It's time for us to wrap（裹） up this episode（插曲）, dear listeners.