Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-04

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

You have a problem in your apartment that needs repairs.

Write a letter to the building manager. In your letter
• describe the problem.
• say what you think should be done about it.
• ask the building manager to visit your apartment to see the problem.

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear _________,

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Dear Mr Shah,

I hope you are doing well and your health is good. I am writing this letter to inform you several issues related to our building.

First of all, I would like to draw your attention on building's outer wall is damaged from last one month. The paint on the wall is vanishing from last one year because of rain, wind and extrem heat. Thus, now outer wall color seems fed, that impacts awfull in term of residence appearance . Moreover, residents tackling obstecals because they cannot provide their apartment on rent.

I would like to advise you to do painting work as soon as possible. In next two months winter is comming with snow storm so, this work need to be completed before it. I would like to request you to visit my apartment, rather than just doing video call meeting.

Yours faithfully,

Rajvi

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The response addresses the main parts of the prompt, including describing the problem with the building's outer wall, suggesting it be painted before winter, and asking the manager to visit the apartment. However, some ideas are under-developed or unclear, such as the claim that residents are tackling obstacles because they cannot rent out their apartments, which lacks clarity. Furthermore, the length requirement has not been met, as the response is slightly below the minimum word count of one hundred and fifty words. To reach a higher level, all bullet points need to be more fully extended and supported with clearer explanations, and the word count must satisfy the task instructions.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The letter maintains a coherent overall arrangement with a recognisable beginning, middle, and end, using standard opening and closing conventions. Paragraphing is used to separate the greeting, introduction, main body points, and sign-off. However, cohesion is at times mechanical or faulty. For instance, the transition 'First of all, I would like to draw your attention on building's outer wall...' relies on basic linking phrases, and referencing is occasionally unclear, such as how the final sentence connects logically to the previous point about the winter snow storm. To improve, the writer should employ a wider and more flexible range of cohesive devices and ensure smoother logical progression between sentences.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is minimally adequate for the task, providing enough range to communicate the basic situation. However, there are noticeable lexical errors in word choice, spelling, and collocation that detract from the writing. Examples include 'extrem heat', 'fed' instead of faded, 'awfull in term of residence appearance', and spelling errors such as 'obstecals' and 'comming'. The writer attempts some less common vocabulary, but these inaccuracies show limited control over word forms and spelling. To achieve a higher score, the student needs to expand their lexical range with accurate collocations and eliminate spelling mistakes.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The response features a mix of simple and some attempted complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors present, particularly with prepositions and tense usage. For example, writing 'attention on' instead of 'attention to', 'is damaged from last one month' instead of 'has been damaged for the last month', and 'this work need to be completed' where subject-verb agreement is incorrect. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they occur frequently enough to show a lack of consistent control over complex grammar patterns. To progress, the writer must improve accuracy in verb tenses, prepositions, and subject-verb agreement.

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

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