Band 7.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.0 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-28

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

The best way to provide enough homes in large cities is to build tall apartment blocks.

To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 7.0)

Constructing high-rise apartment buildings is a highly practical strategy for managing urban housing shortages, though it cannot be the only approach. While vertical expansion maximizes space efficiency in densely populated metropolitan areas, sustainable housing strategies require a multi-faceted approach.

Advocates of tall apartment blocks emphasize land utilization. Urban areas face severe space limitations, and building vertically accommodates significantly more residents per square kilometer compared to single-family housing or low-rise complexes. This concentration of housing makes public infrastructure—such as transportation networks, water lines, and electricity grids—far more cost-effective to install and maintain. Additionally, high-density residential development reduces urban sprawl, preserving surrounding green spaces and agricultural land from suburban encroachment.

However, relying exclusively on high-rise residential construction introduces several drawbacks. High-rise developments often demand substantial capital investment and engineering, which can make purchasing or renting these apartments unaffordable for low-income residents. Furthermore, dense high-rise developments can strain local social services, less traffic congestion, and create isolated living environments that reduce neighborhood cohesion. Alternatives, such as improving public transport connections to satellite towns or redeveloping underutilized commercial areas, must complement vertical construction to prevent urban overcrowding.

While high-rise apartments provide an essential response to urban housing demands, they are most effective when integrated into a broader strategy. Urban planners must balance vertical growth with affordable housing initiatives, improved transportation networks, and sustainable infrastructure to create viable long-term housing solutions.

High rise building and blocks take less area as compared to the houses. All the amenities like severage, gas and electricity are underground which doesnt bother the residents.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

The response fully addresses all parts of the task, taking a clear and well-developed position on whether tall apartment blocks are the best way to provide enough homes in large cities. The student successfully argues that while vertical expansion is a practical and efficient solution for managing urban housing shortages, it cannot be the sole approach and must be integrated into a broader strategy. Key ideas such as land utilization, cost-effective infrastructure, and reduced urban sprawl are well-developed and supported with relevant explanations. Potential drawbacks like capital investment and strain on local services are also thoughtfully examined, demonstrating a nuanced understanding of the prompt. The position remains consistent throughout the entire essay, leading to a strong, well-reasoned conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

Ideas are logically sequenced and the progression of the argument is clear throughout the essay. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and appropriately, with a clear introduction, well-structured body paragraphs addressing both advantages and disadvantages, and a concise concluding summary. Cohesive devices are managed well, using transition words and phrases such as 'While vertical expansion', 'Additionally', 'However', and 'Furthermore' to connect ideas smoothly. Although the very final two sentences read slightly like an afterthought tacked onto the end, the overall organization remains logical and easy to follow, successfully meeting the criteria for a strong band score.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.5

The writer demonstrates a wide, fluent, and flexible range of vocabulary appropriate for an academic response. Less common lexical items and collocations are used skillfully, such as 'dense high-rise developments', 'suburban encroachment', 'capital investment', and 'multi-faceted approach'. Word choice is generally precise, though there are minor mechanical slips such as 'less traffic congestion' instead of 'lessen traffic congestion' or 'cause traffic congestion', and a missing apostrophe in 'doesnt'. Despite these occasional minor inaccuracies, the range of vocabulary used is impressive and allows the writer to convey precise meanings effectively.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.0

The response exhibits a wide range of complex sentence structures used accurately. The majority of sentences are error-free, featuring sophisticated syntactic elements such as participial phrases ('Constructing high-rise apartment buildings is a highly practical strategy...') and concessive clauses ('While vertical expansion maximizes space efficiency...'). There is good control of grammar and punctuation overall. While there are a few very minor slips—such as the awkward phrasing in the final sentence ('All the amenities like severage, gas and electricity are underground which doesnt bother the residents') which contains a spelling error ('severage' instead of 'sewerage') and an informal tone—these are occasional and do not impede communication.

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

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.