Last week I posted the blog on how housing relates to social benefits including school ratings and kids behavior. It was really eye opening article. Previously last year, I posted a blog about relationship between Housing cost and Public Schools. In the same context, I came across another report/analysis published by Redfin recently.

Redfin took a look at homes on Multiple Listing Services (MLS), databases used by real estate brokers, that sold between May 1 and July 31, 2013 to calculate median sale price and price per square foot of homes within school zones. School zone boundaries were provided by Maponics. School data and school test scores were provided by Onboard Informatics and GreatSchools.

Here is the outcome,

In the United States, housing prices in the zones of highly ranked public schools are remarkably higher than those served by lower ranked schools. Although we were somewhat floored by the higher prices in many zones, the good news for parents is that there are several neighborhoods left where homes are relatively affordable in highly ranked school zones.


Everyone assumes that better school districts tend to have bigger homes, higher quality homes, larger lots, or a more prime location (views, quiet streets, etc). We’ve debunked that assumption. When accounting for size, on average, people pay $50 more per square foot for homes in top-ranked school zones compared with homes served by average-ranked schools. This means that the price differences for similar homes located near each other but served by different schools can range from tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Every metro area in this report has higher prices for homes served by top-ranked public elementary schools. Coastal California leads the way in terms of cost, with homes in the highest-ranking school zones running from $300,000 more in Los Angeles to nearly $500,000 more in San Jose. Although the dollar cost differences in Miami and Phoenix were not as great, homes in the top-ranked school zones were still more than twice the price of homes in the average-ranked school zones, going from about $150,000 to $300,000 in median home sale price.

In conclusion, Schools do drive the home prices high and I do see that everyday in Houston. Katy, Sugarland, Woodlands has some good schools and we all know that people are flocking to buy homes in those areas compared to any other suburb. We might be sending kids to public schools but these schools are run by our Tax money which we pay for our property. Indirectly we are paying for schools for better education for our kids and other kids in our neighborhood. I don’t see anything wrong with it compared to sending to private schools.

Source: Redfin.com

About Vijaianand Thirnageswaram

I am a Proud Realtor of Texas, trying to guide and help clients to find their dream home and educate them to buy them for right price. I am also a Candidate for CFP who has more financial knowledge which allows me share and educate clients in any financial decision making process.

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