Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-01
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)
Owning a house in some countries is a substantial thing. While other people prefer renting, some individuals might think the opposite way. This essay will discuss both the positive and negative sides of the situation.
On the one hand, being an owner of a house is a vast advantage for people. For instance, people who have their own home do not need to pay the monthly rental. This will ease the burden of paying extra bills. Moreover, it is more comfortable and easier to renovate the house in the event that there are parts of it that should be repaired. Home owners have the freedom to live the way they want to. In contrast, building a house is expensive. Owners need to make sure that they are financially prepared for all the materials and things in constructing a house.
On the other hand, although renting does not require a large amount of money, difficulties in paying monthly is the big deal as well as being comfortable. For example, lessee need to obey rules and protocols of the landlord or landlady of the house. Repairment of any part of the house needs approval and conditions. There are a lot of restrictions to be followed.
In conclusion, both renting and owning a house has positive and negative effects. The most substantial thing that people need to consider are one’s preference of living standard and amount of saving because at the end if the day, the decisions are still on the people’s hands.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The essay addresses both parts of the prompt: reasons for the importance of home ownership and an opinion on whether this is positive or negative. However, the development is somewhat limited. While you mention financial benefits and freedom as reasons, the discussion on whether the situation is positive or negative is underdeveloped. You state that both have effects but do not clearly argue your own position, which is a requirement for a higher band. To improve, ensure you explicitly state your stance in the introduction and maintain it throughout the essay, providing more depth to your arguments rather than just listing points.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear attempt to use cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'Moreover', and 'In conclusion'. However, the flow between sentences is sometimes mechanical. For example, the transition between the benefits of owning and the costs of building is abrupt. Additionally, some referencing is slightly unclear, such as the use of 'the situation' in the introduction without a clear antecedent. To improve, focus on using a wider variety of linking words and ensure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence that connects back to the main argument.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the precision and range required for higher bands. You rely on basic descriptors like 'substantial thing' and 'big deal', which are not ideal for academic writing. There are also some awkward collocations, such as 'Repairment of any part', where 'Repairs to any part' would be more natural. To reach a higher band, try to incorporate more sophisticated vocabulary related to housing and finance, such as 'property investment', 'financial stability', or 'restrictive covenants', and focus on using words in their correct collocations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text. For instance, 'lessee need to obey' should be 'lessees need to obey', and 'both renting and owning a house has' should be 'have'. There are also minor issues with articles and pluralization. To improve, focus on subject-verb agreement and proofreading for small errors. Incorporating more complex sentence forms, such as conditional sentences or relative clauses, would also help demonstrate a wider grammatical range.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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