Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-30
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)
Renting a house is more popular than owning it among individuals in few countries.I believe this is because recession and lack of infrastructure. However, this is a negative circumstance as people's hard earned money is being wasted in the form of rent and this money spent cannot give them home ownership.
In many countries, recession have hit hard ,due to which there are less job opportunities and consecutively a decrease in earnings. Moreover, this has lead to increase in interest rates and homes have gone beyond the reach of people.So, rather than buying a living space , an individual prefer to rent it to save some money. Also, some countries do not have enough space to build new homes, which have compelled citizens to lease properties.
I consider this condition as negative because the money that goes into rent does not bring any positive change in tenants life. Renting a home does not gives them the ownership and comfort of their own home.
In conclusion, recession and no space of infrastructure can be the cause to rent a house whereas rent
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 250 words, reaching only 181 words. This significantly impacts the development of ideas, as the essay is incomplete and ends abruptly mid-sentence in the conclusion. While the prompt asks for reasons why home ownership is important and whether this is positive or negative, the discussion is underdeveloped. The reasons provided (recession, lack of infrastructure) are mentioned but not sufficiently expanded upon to demonstrate a clear argument. The position is stated, but the lack of length and the unfinished nature of the text prevent a full exploration of the topic.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into paragraphs, but the progression of ideas is hindered by the incomplete nature of the text. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'Moreover', 'Also', and 'In conclusion', but they are sometimes used in a mechanical way. The referencing is occasionally unclear, and the abrupt ending of the essay severely disrupts the overall coherence. To improve, ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence and that ideas are linked logically throughout the entire response, rather than just within individual sentences.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. There is some repetition of basic terms like 'home', 'house', and 'money'. Phrases such as 'recession have hit hard' and 'living space' are functional but basic. There are also minor errors in word choice, such as 'no space of infrastructure', which is not a natural collocation. To achieve a higher score, try to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to economics and housing, such as 'financial instability', 'property market', or 'long-term investment'.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors that occasionally impede clarity. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('recession have hit', 'does not gives'), missing articles ('in few countries'), and incorrect preposition usage. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with missing spaces after periods. While the meaning is generally understandable, the frequency of these errors limits the score. Focusing on proofreading for basic subject-verb agreement and article usage would significantly improve the accuracy of the writing.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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