Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-10-01

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 7.5)

In some countries, owning a home is considered an important life goal, and many people prefer purchasing a property rather than renting one. This is mainly because home ownership provides financial security and greater stability. In my view, this is generally a positive development, although it can create financial pressure for some individuals.

One major reason why people prefer to own their homes is financial security. Unlike rent, which is a regular expense that does not provide any ownership, mortgage payments contribute towards acquiring a valuable asset. Once a mortgage has been fully repaid, people can live in their homes without having to make monthly housing payments. Furthermore, property prices may increase over time, meaning that a house can serve as a long-term investment. For example, a family that purchases a property in a developing area may find that its value increases substantially after several years.

Another reason is that owning a home provides greater stability. Homeowners do not have to worry about landlords increasing the rent or asking them to leave the property. This is particularly important for families with children, as remaining in the same neighbourhood allows children to attend the same school and maintain stable social relationships. Homeowners also have greater freedom to renovate or modify their property according to their preferences.

Overall, I believe that the strong desire to own a home is a positive situation because it encourages financial independence and provides long-term stability. However, people should avoid taking on excessive debt simply to become homeowners, as unaffordable mortgages can create significant financial stress.

In conclusion, people in many countries value home ownership because it offers financial security, investment potential and greater stability. Although purchasing a home can be financially challenging, I believe that its long-term benefits generally make this a positive trend.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 7.5

You successfully address all parts of the task, examining both the reasons why home ownership is important and your own perspective on whether this is a positive or negative situation. Your position is clearly stated in the introduction and maintained consistently throughout the essay. The ideas are well extended and supported with relevant explanations, such as the financial distinction between rent and mortgage payments, and the emotional and educational stability that staying in one neighbourhood provides for families. To move even closer to the highest level, you could further nuance your arguments by acknowledging alternative housing models or socio-economic contexts, but your current development of ideas shows strong extension and clear support throughout.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.5

Your essay demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression from the introduction through the body paragraphs to the conclusion. Each paragraph has a clear central topic, such as financial security in the second paragraph and stability in the third. You use cohesive devices flexibly and appropriately, such as 'Furthermore', 'Unlike rent', and 'Another reason is that', guiding the reader smoothly through your arguments. Paragraphing is used sufficiently and logically. To achieve an even higher level, you could ensure that cohesive links between sentences are entirely seamless and varied without relying on any standard transitional phrases, but your overall management of cohesion and logical flow is very strong.

Lexical Resource: Band 7.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary that allows for flexibility and precision, such as 'financial security', 'valuable asset', 'long-term investment', and 'excessive debt'. You successfully incorporate less common lexical items with some awareness of style and collocation, such as 'contribute towards acquiring' and 'financial stress'. There are occasional minor inaccuracies or common word choices, but they do not impede communication. To reach the next level, you could use a wider range of sophisticated, less common vocabulary with complete naturalness and precision, avoiding slightly repetitive phrasing like 'greater stability' and 'greater freedom'.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 7.5

You display a good control of grammar and punctuation, utilising a variety of complex sentence structures with frequent error-free sentences. Examples such as 'Unlike rent, which is a regular expense that does not provide any ownership, mortgage payments contribute towards acquiring a valuable asset' demonstrate your ability to handle subordination and relative clauses effectively. Control over verb tenses, articles, and prepositions is generally strong throughout the essay. A few minor slips persist, but they never impede communication. To push towards the highest band, you would need to produce an even wider range of structures with near-total flexibility and rare minor slips.

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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