Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-07-28

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In some countries owning a home rather than renting one is very important for people. Why might this be the case? Do you think this is a positive or negative situation?

Student answer (Band 5.5)

Nowadays, owning a home is considered an important goal in many countries. While many people prefer purchasing a house instead of renting one, there are several reasons for this trend. This essay will discuss the reason behind this phenomenon and explain why I believe it is a positive development.

There are several reasons why many people prefer owning a home. One major reason is that they can rent a room to people who are difficulties with finding a new house. This is because some countries do not have enough apartments or houses for their residents. For example, a lot of residents rent their houses to people when they are not home. Another reason is that, some

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response is significantly under the required word count of 250 words, reaching only 116 words. Because the essay is incomplete, it fails to address all parts of the task. The introduction is present, but the body paragraphs are cut off mid-sentence, meaning the arguments are not developed, and the conclusion is entirely missing. The prompt asks for reasons why home ownership is important and whether it is a positive or negative situation; while the writer mentions a reason, the lack of development and the failure to complete the essay severely limits the score. To improve, you must ensure you provide full arguments with supporting examples and a clear conclusion.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay shows a basic attempt at logical organization with an introduction and the start of a body paragraph. However, because the text is incomplete, it is impossible to assess the overall progression of ideas or the effective use of paragraphing. Cohesive devices such as 'While' and 'One major reason' are used correctly to link ideas, but the abrupt ending prevents a coherent flow. To achieve a higher score, you need to complete your thoughts, use a wider range of linking words, and ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence followed by supporting details.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally appropriate for the task, such as 'phenomenon', 'residents', and 'purchasing'. However, the range is limited due to the short length of the response. There are minor errors, such as 'people who are difficulties with finding', which should be 'people who have difficulty finding'. The vocabulary is sufficient to convey basic meaning but lacks the flexibility and precision required for higher bands. To improve, try to incorporate more topic-specific vocabulary related to housing, economics, or social trends, and ensure accurate grammatical collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the use of 'While' to introduce a subordinate clause. However, there are grammatical inaccuracies, such as 'people who are difficulties with finding', which indicates a lack of control over basic sentence construction. Punctuation is generally acceptable, but the incomplete nature of the sentences makes it difficult to judge the full range of your grammatical ability. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and ensure that your complex sentences are constructed accurately without errors in word form.

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