Key features to report

• The two categories move in opposite directions and add up to roughly 100% in each year, so a rise in ownership always matches a fall in renting.
• In 1918 renting dominated: about 77% of households rented and only about 23% owned their home.
• Ownership rose to about 32% in 1939 and stayed at that level in 1953, then climbed to about 41% in 1961, while renting fell to about 68% and then to just under 60%.
• In 1971 the two figures were equal at roughly 50% each, which is the turning point of the chart.
• After 1971 ownership kept rising to about 61% in 1981 and peaked at about 69-70% in 1991 and 2001, while renting dropped to around 32-33%.
• The trend reversed slightly in the final decade: by 2011 ownership had fallen to about 65% and renting had risen to about 37%.

Model overview

Overall, the housing pattern in England and Wales was reversed over the period, with renting the dominant form of tenure until 1971 and home ownership the majority from then on. The rise in ownership was almost continuous until 2001, although it was followed by a small decline by 2011.

Paragraph plan

1. 1

   Introduction

   Paraphrase the task: the chart compares the proportions of households in England and Wales that owned or rented their homes between 1918 and 2011.

2. 2

   Overview

   Say that the two forms of tenure swapped places: renting was the norm until the two were level in 1971, after which owning was more common, and mention the slight reversal at the end.

3. 3

   Body paragraph 1: 1918 to 1971

   Give the 1918 figures (about 77% renting, 23% owning), the levelling of both at around 32% and 68% in 1939 and 1953, the further shift to about 41% and 59% in 1961, and the equal shares of about 50% in 1971.

4. 4

   Body paragraph 2: 1971 to 2011

   Report the continued rise in ownership to about 61% in 1981 and its peak of about 70% in 2001, with renting falling to about 32%, then the small change in 2011, when ownership fell to about 65% and renting recovered to about 37%.

Useful comparisons

• Divide the chart at 1971, the year the two bars are equal: renting is the majority before it and owning is the majority after it.
• Point out the mirror image: because each household either owns or rents, the two bars always total about 100%.
• Note the periods of no change, such as 1939 and 1953, when both figures stayed almost the same.
• Compare the largest gap in 1918 (about 77% against 23%) with the gap in 2001 (about 70% against 32%), which is almost a reversal.
• Highlight the final decade as the only time ownership fell and renting rose.
• Compare the size of change: ownership roughly tripled from about 23% to a peak of about 70%.

Band 8+ model answer

190 words · An original model answer written for ieltswrites, not an official answer. It stays in English, as in the exam.

Why this answer scores highly

Task Achievement

The answer presents a clear overview of the reversal between renting and owning, identifies the 1971 crossover and the final small reversal, and supports each stage with accurate approximate figures.

Coherence and Cohesion

The data is divided at the 1971 turning point into two clear periods, and each paragraph links the two categories with expressions such as correspondingly, whereas and from then on.

Lexical Resource

Varied, precise words such as tenure, owner-occupiers, the norm, outnumbered and recovered avoid repeating the labels from the chart.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

The answer uses past simple and past perfect forms, comparative structures and participle clauses such as with renting falling to, all accurately controlled.

Useful vocabulary

households

groups of people living together in one home; the unit counted in the chart

owner-occupied

lived in by the people who own it

home ownership

the situation of owning the home you live in

rented accommodation

housing that people pay to live in but do not own

tenants

people who rent their home from a landlord

form of tenure

the legal basis on which someone occupies a home, such as owning or renting

the dominant form

the most common type

draw level

reach the same figure

a mirror image

an exact opposite pattern

plateau

stay at about the same level after a period of change

peak at

reach the highest point

a slight reversal

a small change in the opposite direction to the main trend

the majority of

more than half of

roughly tripled

became about three times as large

Common mistakes

• Writing that the number of houses increased, when the chart shows the percentage of households, not numbers of homes or people.
• Describing the owned and rented bars separately for all nine years, which produces a long list and misses the clear comparison between them.
• Missing the 1971 crossover, when both forms of tenure were about equal, which is the key turning point.
• Ignoring the final change, when ownership fell to about 65% and renting rose to about 37% in 2011.
• Inventing exact readings such as 68.4%; most values fall between gridlines and should be given as about or just under.
• Treating the intervals as equal: the chart jumps from 1918 to 1939 and from 1939 to 1953, so avoid saying every ten years.

Frequently asked questions

Which Cambridge book is this question from?

This bar chart about households owning and renting accommodation in England and Wales from 1918 to 2011 is Writing Task 1 of Test 2 in Cambridge IELTS 13 Academic, published in 2018.

Should I describe owning and renting separately?

It is better to describe them together, because one rises as the other falls. Grouping the years into periods, before and after 1971, makes the comparison clearer.

Do I need to mention every year on the chart?

No. Select the key points: the starting figures in 1918, the equal shares in 1971, the peak of ownership around 2001 and the final change in 2011.

How many words should I write for this Task 1?

Write at least 150 words; about 170-200 words is enough to give an overview and the key figures in about 20 minutes.