Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-09-18
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)
Many individuals believe that owning a household accommodation is very crucial rather than renting one. This is mainly due to the rise in price of rented houses near urban areas of a country. I believe this is a positive situation because it saves a lot of money in the long term and you can customize your home to your own accord.
One of the primary causes of this situation can be the price hike of rented accomodation nowdays. As more residents are shifting towards urban areas of the country for better infrastructure, opportunities and services. The limited space of the cities can be major problem as the demand of rented household keeps on increasing. Due to which, prices for accommodations have also increased as per their demand. For example, the living cost of residing in Kathmandu has increased by more than 70% in the last decade.
I believe this a positive situation for several reasons. First and foremost, it saves a large sum of money in the long term as you do not have to pay monthly installments. Furthermore, you can just sell the house if you want to shift to other places and get the money back. In addition to this, you can personalize your household as per your choice. For instance, you can add new compartments to your house such as a garage or a garden which you could not do in a rented one because it is not owned by you.
To conclude, demand of accommodations and the rise in the living cost are the primary causes of this situation. I believe this is a positive situation because it conserves a lot of money and people can modify the house as per their liking.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| 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, investigating why homeownership is valued and whether this is a positive or negative situation. A clear position is established early in the introduction and maintained throughout the essay. The reasons for the rise in homeownership, such as increasing urban rental costs and the desire for financial security and customisation, are relevant and supported with an example from Kathmandu. However, some ideas could be extended further; for instance, the explanation of urban migration and housing demand is somewhat compressed. Nevertheless, the requirements of the task are successfully met, aligning well with the descriptors for Band 6.5 or a solid Band 6, tending towards Band 6 for partial development.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is coherent overall with a clear progression of ideas from causes in the second paragraph to personal opinions in the third. Paragraphing is used appropriately, with each paragraph focusing on a distinct aspect of the prompt. Cohesive devices are employed to connect ideas, such as 'First and foremost', 'Furthermore', and 'In addition to this'. However, there are instances where cohesion feels slightly mechanical or where sentence linking is less than seamless, such as the fragment 'As more residents are shifting towards urban areas...' which is linked incorrectly to the following sentence. Overall arrangement is logical, fitting the criteria for Band 6.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student displays an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'urban areas', 'infrastructure', 'monthly installments', and 'personalize'. There are some inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, for instance, writing 'owning a household accommodation' instead of 'owning a home', and misspelling 'accomodation' as 'accomodation' (with one 'm'). Despite these occasional slips and spelling errors, the vocabulary is sufficient to communicate the main ideas clearly without impeding the reader, making it a comfortable Band 6 performance.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including relative clauses and conditional-like structures ('if you want to shift', 'which you could not do'). However, there are notable grammatical errors and punctuation issues, such as the sentence fragment 'As more residents are shifting towards urban areas of the country for better infrastructure, opportunities and services.' followed abruptly by 'The limited space of the cities can be major problem...'. Other minor issues include article omission ('can be major problem'). While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede communication, placing the response securely in Band 6.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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