Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-20

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

Five months ago, you started renting an apartment on a six-month agreement. You now wish to stay in the apartment for longer than the six months you originally agreed with the owner.

Write a letter to the owner of your apartment. In your letter

• say how long you now want to rent the apartment for
• explain why your plans have changed
• tell the owner about a problem in the apartment

You do NOT need to write any addresses.

Begin your letter as follows:

Dear ....................................,

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am a resident of Unit 1003 at your downtown building. My current six-month contract is ending next month, and I am willing to extend the lease if possible, as I plan to stay longer than intended.

Having stayed at your apartment for almost five months, I now feel the location is convenient for me as well as I have few friends staying the same building. So I am planning to extend my lease for six months further, if that is possible for you.

Initially, the project which I was working on was ending next month, but there are a few major flaws which were found, so my working contract has been extended for another six months. This location suits me best as it is only a 5-minute walk to my office and I do not need to worry much about the commute.

One last thing which I would like to highlight is that the lights in the balcony are not working and they need to be replaced. So if you can raise a ticket to the building management they can replace it.

Yours Faithfully,

Aryan

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have successfully addressed all three bullet points in the prompt. You clearly stated the desired extension period, provided a logical reason for the change in plans regarding your work contract, and identified the issue with the balcony lights. The tone is appropriate for a formal letter to a landlord. To reach a higher band, ensure that the connection between your personal situation and the request is even more tightly integrated. For example, you could have explicitly linked the work extension to the necessity of staying in the apartment, which you did well, but ensure the transition between the request and the maintenance issue is smoother.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The letter is well-organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph focuses on a specific aspect of the task, which makes the letter easy to follow. You used some cohesive devices such as 'Initially' and 'One last thing' to guide the reader. However, some transitions could be more sophisticated to improve the flow. For instance, the second paragraph is a bit repetitive regarding the lease extension. Using more varied linking words or phrases would help the ideas connect more naturally rather than feeling like a list of points.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.5

You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey your message clearly. Phrases like 'extend the lease', 'major flaws', and 'raise a ticket' are appropriate for this context. There are some minor issues with word choice, such as 'few friends staying the same building' (should be 'in the same building') and 'working contract' (usually 'employment contract'). While the vocabulary is adequate for the task, incorporating more precise collocations or slightly more formal synonyms would elevate the quality of your writing to a higher band level.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good mix of simple and complex sentence structures. Most of your sentences are clear and error-free, which ensures that communication is never impeded. There are a few minor grammatical slips, such as 'few friends staying the same building' (missing preposition) and 'replace it' (referring to 'lights', which is plural, so it should be 'replace them'). Despite these small errors, your control over grammar is generally strong, and your use of punctuation is accurate throughout the letter.

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

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