Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-08-06

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You live in a small apartment building with a parking lot in back, and you often cannot find an empty parking space when you get home from work.

Write a letter to your landlord. In your letter
• describe the situation.
• explain why it bothers you.
• suggest something the landlord could do to solve the problem.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ____

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear sir,

I am writing to express my dissatisfaction with the parking facility that you provided for tenants but i do not find suitable space for my vehicle most of the time.

firstly, i have been living in this apartment since 2 years as a tenant. There is a parking lot in the back of the building which is allowed by you to use, unfortunately i did not get enough space to park my car.

Moreover, i always noticed that the place remains busy with unknown person's vehicles. Owing to this problem, i have to park my own vehicle in the street parking even once i got the ticket for not parking the parking in accurate place.

Lastly, i would like draw your attention on this issue so that you could provide me possible solution as soon as possible.

I look forward for your prompt response.

Yours faithfully,

Kiran

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The letter covers all three bullet points: describing the situation, explaining the impact, and suggesting a solution. However, the response falls just short of the 150-word minimum requirement, which negatively impacts the task achievement score. While the ideas are relevant, they are somewhat underdeveloped. For instance, the suggestion to the landlord is quite vague ('provide me possible solution'). To reach a higher band, you should expand on your ideas—perhaps by suggesting specific solutions like issuing parking permits or installing a gate. The tone is generally appropriate for a formal letter, but the brevity prevents a fully developed response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The letter is organized into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow your argument. You use some cohesive devices such as 'firstly', 'moreover', and 'lastly' to structure your points. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear (e.g., 'the parking in accurate place'). The paragraphing is sufficient, but the overall progression could be smoother if you used a wider variety of linking words and ensured that each paragraph focused on a single, well-developed idea. The structure is functional but basic.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task but lacks variety and precision. You rely on simple phrasing, such as 'parking facility that you provided' and 'unknown person's vehicles'. There are also some awkward collocations and minor errors, such as 'since 2 years' (should be 'for 2 years') and 'park the parking'. To improve, try to incorporate more specific vocabulary related to housing and parking issues. For example, instead of 'not suitable space', you could use 'insufficient parking availability'. Expanding your range of synonyms and collocations will help you achieve a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The letter contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors that, while they do not prevent communication, are noticeable. Examples include 'since 2 years' instead of 'for 2 years', 'allowed by you to use' (passive voice is slightly awkward here), and 'even once i got the ticket'. Additionally, there are punctuation and capitalization issues, such as the lowercase 'i' used throughout the text. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement, correct preposition usage, and ensuring that all sentences are grammatically complete and punctuated correctly.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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