Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-03

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, Mam

I am writing this letter because five months ago i have started renting this apartment for the six months agreement but I want to let you know that I want to stay nine months longer than the agreement we made.

As I have got a job opportunity near my apartment, I am comfortable commuting to my workplace from my house, and its less time taking also. Since it's my responsibility to inform you in advance about the situation, my plans have changed everything.

Secondly, I want to mention some issues in the apartment as follows: there is a tap leaking in the main bathroom, as I have mentioned this same problem before also, and another is that I have seen some small insects which are roaming around in the house; I should recommend you to get pest control.

Therefore, I want you to accept my request to stay longer in the apartment.

your sincerely,

Dhwani Pandya

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully covers all the required bullet points of the task. You clearly stated how long you wish to rent the apartment for by mentioning an additional nine months, explained that your plans changed due to a new job opportunity near your apartment, and informed the owner about the leaking tap and small insects. All parts of the prompt are addressed, which meets the core requirements of this band level. However, some ideas show a tendency to be slightly under-developed rather than fully extended; for instance, the explanation regarding the change of plans and the description of the apartment problems could benefit from a bit more elaboration and specific detail. To reach a higher level, you should aim to fully develop every part of the prompt with richer background details and more precise context.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

Your letter presents a coherent overall arrangement where the purpose of the communication is clear from the beginning, and each bullet point is addressed in sequence. You use basic cohesive devices to connect your thoughts, such as 'Secondly', 'Therefore', and 'Since'. However, referencing and cohesion can occasionally feel somewhat mechanical or repetitive, such as starting multiple sentences with 'As' or 'I'. Furthermore, paragraphing could be managed more effectively by separating the apartment issues into a distinct paragraph from the rental extension request. To achieve a higher score, you should ensure that your cohesive devices link ideas more smoothly and fluidly without relying on formulaic transitions, and organise your paragraphs so that each major point has its own clear section.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully communicating everyday concepts such as 'job opportunity', 'apartment', and 'pest control'. There are attempts to use less common vocabulary items like 'commuting' and 'recommend', though some word choices and collocations feel slightly awkward or imprecise, such as 'its less time taking also' and 'insects which are roaming around'. Spelling and word choice errors are present, but they do not impede the reader's understanding of your message. To improve your lexical score further, you should incorporate a wider variety of natural, precise phrasing and uncommon lexical items, while paying closer attention to standard collocations and word forms in English.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

Your writing demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as using subordinate clauses beginning with 'Since' and 'As'. You show an ability to handle multi-clause sentences, but there are noticeable errors in grammar and punctuation throughout the letter. Examples include tense mixing in 'five months ago i have started renting' instead of the simple past, article omissions like 'for the six months agreement', and punctuation slips in the sign-off ('your sincerely, Dhwani Pandya'). While these errors rarely impede overall communication, they prevent the text from achieving a higher level of accuracy. To reach the next band, you need to produce a higher proportion of error-free sentences and exercise tighter control over tense selection, prepositions, and article usage.

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

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