You have recently moved to a different house. Now you would like to notify one of your English-speaking friends that you have moved to a different house. Write a letter to this English-speaking friend. In your letter: - explain why you have moved - describe the new house - invite your friend to come and visit Dear...............,
Sample Response
Dear Simmons, Hope you're doing great. I'm still relishing the pleasant memories we had together during our last trip - it was wonderful. I'm writing to let you know that we've moved into a house in Bath, a town set in the rolling countryside of southwest England. I hope you would visit us soon. As you know, my previous apartment was far away from my office and it was inconvenient both for me and Anna to commute a long distance daily. However, we could not shift our house considering Julie's school location. This summer I transferred her to Kingswood School in Bath and moved here soon after. Now the daily commute is no longer a cause of concern for us. We moved into this house at the beginning of February and we really like it. A small garden at the front makes it even more beautiful. We now have enough space to park 3 cars! It has five rooms, a lawn and two large balconies. The best part is that the area is quiet and surrounded by astonishing natural beauty. After living in a flat in a busy area for nearly 8 years, a spacious house seems like a dream come true. I hope you would visit us soon as I'm really looking forward to having you and Linda with us for a few days. It will be fun. Hope to meet you soon. Warm wishes, Mitchell
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Fix paired structure Original: both for me and Anna Suggested revision: for both Anna and me Why it matters: Both should directly introduce the two coordinated people.
- 2. Correct move collocation Original: shift our house Suggested revision: move house Why it matters: Move house is the standard expression for changing residence.
- 3. Use natural phrasing Original: still relishing the pleasant memories Suggested revision: still cherishing the memories Why it matters: This is a more natural collocation for fond memories.
- 4. Join clauses correctly Original: last trip - it Suggested revision: last trip—it Why it matters: An em dash should not have spaces in this construction.
- 5. Simplify the description Original: a town set in the rolling countryside of southwest England Suggested revision: a town in the rolling countryside of south-west England Why it matters: The shorter phrasing conveys the location more naturally.
- 6. Keep possession consistent Original: my previous apartment Suggested revision: our previous apartment Why it matters: The apartment belonged to the family discussed in the sentence.
- 7. Use natural collocation Original: commute a long distance daily Suggested revision: make a long commute every day Why it matters: This collocation is more idiomatic in this context.
- 8. Clarify the reason Original: considering Julie's school location Suggested revision: because of Julie's school location Why it matters: The causal link is clearer with because of.
- 9. Organise the letter Suggested revision: Divide the letter into an opening, the reason for moving, the house description, and the invitation. Why it matters: Separate functional paragraphs would make the letter easier to follow.
- 10. Consolidate the invitation Suggested revision: Combine the repeated invitations into one clear closing invitation to Simmons and Linda. Why it matters: One focused invitation would fulfil the final bullet without repetition.
Suggested Rewrites
- both for me and Anna for both Anna and me
- shift our house move house
- still relishing the pleasant memories still cherishing the memories
- last trip - it last trip—it
- a town set in the rolling countryside of southwest England a town in the rolling countryside of south-west England
- my previous apartment our previous apartment
Why this response received Band 8.0
The letter fully covers the reason for moving, describes the new home with vivid relevant detail, and extends a warm, appropriately informal invitation. Its message flows naturally and displays a broad vocabulary and varied sentence structures, although a few collocations and modal choices sound slightly unnatural. The priority is to refine phrases such as shift our house and use more idiomatic invitation wording throughout.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Detailed feedback by IELTS writing criterion after the annotated essay.
Task Achievement
The communicative purpose is fully achieved through clear, well-developed coverage of all three bullet points in a suitably friendly tone.
Refine the timing details so the references to February and this summer form an entirely unambiguous sequence.
Coherence and Cohesion
The information progresses naturally from the move and its reasons to the house description and invitation, with effective linking throughout.
Use distinct paragraphs for the reason, description, and invitation to make the structure even easier to scan.
Lexical Resource
A broad and often precise vocabulary creates an engaging description, with only occasional awkward collocations.
Replace non-idiomatic combinations such as shift our house with natural alternatives such as move house.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex structures is handled accurately, and the few lapses do not impede communication.
Use modal forms more idiomatically in invitations, for example I hope you can visit rather than I hope you would visit.