Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-09-05

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 6.5)

Dear Max,

I hope you're doing well. I'm writing this letter to request you for an extension on an originally agreement of lease. I initially confirmed on six months tenure but due to change in my course schedule, there is extension of one semester at school.

My course, which was meant to be graded this term got extended because of the limited seat availability. Devoid of seats made plenty of students to request an extension for an extra semester of studies. With that being said, I plead you for another 6 months of renting your apartment if possible.

Moreover, I do have concern regarding curtains in the living room. I noticed that the blinds needs to be repaired as the rollers are stiff and is causing harsh sunlight to pass through the windows, creating extreme hot temperatures in the room.

It would be really helpful if you can extend my stay and accommodate these needs.

Kind Regards,

Arpit

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

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, and identified a specific maintenance issue regarding the curtains. The tone is appropriate for a formal request to a landlord. The ideas are well-developed and the purpose of the letter is clear from the beginning. To reach a higher band, ensure that your explanations are slightly more concise, as the explanation regarding the 'limited seat availability' at school was a bit wordy and slightly repetitive, though it remained relevant to the task.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The letter is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs for each point, and a polite closing. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Moreover' and 'With that being said' to link your ideas. However, some transitions feel slightly mechanical or forced. For example, 'With that being said' is used in a context where it does not quite fit the logical flow of the argument. Improving the variety and naturalness of your linking words would help the flow of the letter feel more seamless and professional.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'tenure', 'accommodate', and 'extension'. However, there are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation. For instance, 'request you for an extension' is unnatural; it should be 'request an extension from you'. Similarly, 'Devoid of seats' is an incorrect usage of the adjective. You also use 'extreme hot temperatures', which should be 'extremely hot temperatures'. While these errors do not impede communication, they indicate a need for more precise control over word forms and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as 'originally agreement of lease' (should be 'original lease agreement') and 'the blinds needs to be repaired' (subject-verb agreement error: 'blinds need'). Additionally, 'is causing' should be 'are causing' to agree with 'rollers'. While you attempt complex sentences, the frequency of these minor errors prevents the writing from reaching a higher band. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and correct article usage would significantly improve your accuracy.

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

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