Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-04
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)
In some countries, people prefer owning a home rather than ranting one. In my point of view, this might be a positive situation and owning a house is a safe and best option.
The reason behind this is that when a person owns something he can easily and frequently make changes to it by his own choice despite worrying about some owner or manager telling him what to do or not. Other than this, you just have to pay for the place once and stop worrying the rest of his life. And if the person dies, there is a safe place for his children where they can conveniently live thier life. The main advantage is that you don't have to pay the rent every month/year because there might be some rough patch in your life where you can't pay the rent and disowned from that place.
But if you see from another point it is possibly a negative situation because there are people who can't afford to buy their own place so it is convenient for them to just rent an apartment or house and make adjustment in their monthly salary for rent. And the main advantage of renting a place is that whenever something need fixing you don't have to do that by yourself rather you just have to call the owner and tell him to send someone to fix that thing. But still, spending half of you salary on the rent each month is not worth it.
In conclusion, i think owning a house is far better than renting one and people should aim for it rather than paying rent every month/year.
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 response addresses all parts of the prompt, providing reasons for the importance of home ownership and expressing a clear opinion. The ideas are relevant, such as the freedom to renovate and financial security. However, the development is somewhat basic. For instance, the argument regarding children inheriting a home is mentioned but not fully explored. The position is consistent throughout, but the supporting arguments could be more sophisticated to reach a higher band. The response is balanced, acknowledging the benefits of renting, which adds depth to the discussion.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used, such as 'The reason behind this is', 'Other than this', and 'In conclusion'. However, some transitions are mechanical or slightly repetitive. The referencing is generally clear, though the shift between the benefits of owning and renting could be smoother. The overall progression of ideas is logical, and the paragraphing is appropriate for the task, helping the reader follow the argument without difficulty.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The vocabulary is adequate for the task, allowing the student to convey their ideas clearly. There are some spelling errors, such as 'ranting' instead of 'renting' and 'thier' instead of 'their'. The range of vocabulary is somewhat limited, relying on common words like 'safe', 'best', and 'advantage'. To improve, the student should incorporate more precise, topic-specific vocabulary related to real estate and personal finance. While the errors do not impede communication, they prevent the essay from reaching a higher band score.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, such as 'despite worrying about some owner' (should be 'without worrying about'), 'disowned from that place' (incorrect usage), and 'whenever something need fixing' (subject-verb agreement error). While these errors are noticeable, they do not significantly impede the reader's understanding. The control of punctuation is generally acceptable, but the frequent minor grammatical slips indicate that the student has not yet achieved a high level of accuracy in complex structures.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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