Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-27

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 6.0)

Dear Mr. Ravi,

So we did a six month agreement when i rented this apartment, but now i would like to expand my stay here.

The lease we did before was for six month but now i have stayed here for long and know everything near by so i would want to increase my lease to 1 year now before it expires.

This sudden change is because my company is not transfering me to another place for atleast a year now and this place also is very comfortable for me, i am already use to this place and have adapted my living here.

Their is only one problem that i have in this apartment is the continuous leak in the tape of kitchen sink, the sound of it does not sometimes let me sleep the whole night and keeps me anxious, i would really appreciate if you can please get it changed or repaired.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours Sincerely,

Isha Lana

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

The letter successfully addresses all three bullet points: the desired duration of the extension, the reason for the change in plans, and the maintenance issue. The tone is appropriate for a formal request to a landlord. However, the development of ideas is somewhat basic. For instance, the explanation regarding the company transfer is clear, but the description of the apartment issue could be more precise. The letter fulfills the requirements of the task effectively, though it lacks the depth of vocabulary and structural sophistication required for a higher band score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is organized into clear paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a central focus. However, the use of cohesive devices is somewhat limited and occasionally repetitive. For example, the transition between the request for an extension and the explanation for the change in plans could be smoother. While the overall arrangement is logical and the message is easy to follow, the linking of sentences relies on simple conjunctions rather than a more varied range of cohesive markers.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the writer to communicate their needs clearly. There are some instances of imprecise word choice, such as 'expand my stay' (extend) and 'tape of kitchen sink' (tap). Additionally, there are minor spelling and grammatical errors, such as 'transfering' and 'use to' instead of 'used to'. While the range is sufficient to convey the intended meaning, the lack of more sophisticated or precise vocabulary prevents a higher score. The language is functional but lacks variety.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors that, while not impeding communication, are noticeable. Examples include 'So we did a six month agreement' (informal 'so' and missing hyphen), 'Their is only one problem' (incorrect use of 'their' instead of 'there'), and 'does not sometimes let me sleep' (awkward word order). Punctuation is also inconsistent, particularly with the use of commas instead of full stops to separate independent clauses. These errors indicate a need for more careful proofreading and better control over sentence construction.

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

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