a house rented from the local council 地方政府出租的住房(或公寓) CultureCouncil houses and flats are mainly rented by people with lower incomes. The first ones were built after the First World War. They are often on council estates, areas with many houses or flats. Council houses and flats can still be rented, but, since a scheme began in 1980 to give people the right to buy the home they were renting from the council, many are now owned by the people who live in them.