You and your family are living in rented accommodation in an English-speaking country. You are not satisfied with the condition of some of the furniture. Write a letter to the landlord. In your letter: - introduce yourself - explain what is wrong with the furniture - say what action you would like the landlord to take
Sample Response
Dear Ms Linda, I am a tenant in one of your properties in William Street, Norwood. I am writing this letter to bring your attention to some of the substandard furniture that you have provided as part of our rental agreement. I am hoping that you would either fix them or replace them with new ones. In relation to the specifics, I live in apartment 17B with my family for the last 4 months. We were excited when we moved into this apartment but disappointed when we found that a couple of furniture and appliances were old and torn down. The sofa set in the living room has the worst condition. The colour of the cushion has faded out and they are not usable. The coffee table has a broken leg. Besides, the refrigerator in the kitchen does not maintain the desired temperature accurately and the grocery cupboard door locks are missing. Overall, some of the furniture and stuff you have provided are in faulty conditions. I request you to look into this matter urgently. I recommend you kindly arrange for the repair and maintenance of the living room furniture and replace the fridge. New keys for the cupboard can be prepared by a locksmith. I expect your action on this as soon as possible, as these problems are affecting our living and well-being. Yours Sincerely, Ramesh Roy
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use correct collocation Original: bring Suggested revision: draw Why it matters: The standard expression for formally highlighting a problem is “draw your attention to.”
- 2. Fix pronoun agreement Original: fix them or replace them with new ones Suggested revision: repair or replace it Why it matters: The uncountable noun “furniture” requires a singular pronoun here.
- 3. Use countable unit Original: a couple of furniture and appliances Suggested revision: a couple of pieces of furniture and some appliances Why it matters: “Furniture” is uncountable and needs a unit such as “pieces” after “a couple of.”
- 4. Choose precise phrase Original: torn down Suggested revision: worn out Why it matters: “Worn out” describes furniture damaged through use, whereas “torn down” means demolished.
- 5. Correct condition phrase Original: has the worst condition Suggested revision: is in the worst condition Why it matters: English uses “be in” rather than “have” to describe an item's condition.
- 6. Improve temperature wording Original: desired temperature accurately Suggested revision: required temperature consistently Why it matters: “Maintain consistently” more naturally describes a refrigerator's performance.
- 7. Use formal wording Original: stuff Suggested revision: appliances Why it matters: “Stuff” is too vague and informal for a letter to a landlord.
- 8. Remove redundant wording Original: I am writing this letter Suggested revision: I am writing Why it matters: The word “letter” is already clear from the format, so this shorter phrase is more direct.
- 9. Clarify cupboard parts Original: grocery cupboard door locks Suggested revision: locks on the kitchen cupboard doors Why it matters: This phrasing clearly identifies where the missing locks should be fitted.
- 10. Use singular condition Original: in faulty conditions Suggested revision: in a faulty condition Why it matters: “Condition” is singular when describing the collective state of the items.
- 11. Soften formal request Original: I request you to look into Suggested revision: I would appreciate it if you could look into Why it matters: This conditional request is appropriately polite when addressing a landlord.
- 12. Correct request structure Original: I recommend you kindly arrange Suggested revision: I kindly request that you arrange Why it matters: “Request that” accurately introduces the action the landlord is being asked to take.
Suggested Rewrites
- bring draw
- fix them or replace them with new ones repair or replace it
- a couple of furniture and appliances a couple of pieces of furniture and some appliances
- torn down worn out
- has the worst condition is in the worst condition
- desired temperature accurately required temperature consistently
Why this response received Band 7.0
The letter fully addresses the situation with a clear purpose, specific descriptions of the faulty items, and practical requests, while maintaining an appropriately courteous tone. Its main limitation is uneven language control: several inaccurate collocations and agreement or tense errors make otherwise clear details sound unnatural. Prioritise accurate countability, verb forms, and noun-verb agreement while retaining the same direct, well-developed content.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The purpose is immediately clear, all three bullet points are fully covered, and the requested actions are specific and appropriate.
Refine the complaint by distinguishing furniture from appliances and stating the desired remedy for each item even more precisely.
Coherence and Cohesion
The information progresses logically from introduction through the problems to the requested solutions, with generally effective linking.
Use clearer paragraph breaks for the introduction, itemised problems, and requested action, and remove unnecessary transitions such as the repeated overall summary.
Lexical Resource
The letter uses a sufficient range for property problems and repairs, but several collocations are inaccurate or imprecise.
Replace expressions such as old and torn down, has the worst condition, and furniture and stuff with natural, precise alternatives.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of simple and complex structures communicates the message clearly, although recurring tense, countability, agreement, and pronoun errors reduce control.
Check forms such as have lived for four months, a couple of pieces of furniture, the cushions are, and the furniture is.
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IELTS General Training Writing Task 1
You and your family are living in rented accommodation in an English-speaking country. You are not satisfied with the condition of some of the furniture. Write a letter to the landlord. In your letter:
- introduce yourself
- explain what is wrong with the furniture
- say what action you would like the landlord to take
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.