HomeFinder.com Opening Doors Blog

Whether you have children or not, researching your potential new neighborhood’s school district is an important part of your new home search. The National Association of Realtors® reported that 55 percent of families with children under the age of 18 chose their neighborhood based on school district quality. Even if you don’t have children, buying a home in a good school district will be a strong advantage when it comes time to sell. While the primary focus of a good school district is to provide an excellent education, it also adds value to the area’s housing market.

1.) Do your research: Use your real estate agent’s and the home seller’s experience with the district. You can also conduct research on the Internet by visiting websites such as: State Department of Education (will send you grades of schools by state, when available), GreatSchools.org (lets you compare schools across the country) and Education.com (shares school district’s test scores and read parent reviews).

2.) Standardized test scores: Research the district’s standardized test scores, so you can confirm they are at or above the national average. This is one test for the education and district’s teachers.

3.) Know the school zones: Be sure you are clear on the school zones if multiple schools in the district feed into the neighborhood. Sometimes houses across the street from each other are in two different school zones. Do this research on your own, as your real estate agent might not be as familiar with the school zones in the district.

4.) Know the stats: Once you’re clear on the school zones for the home in which you’re interested, find out how modern the facilities and technology are; the teacher-to-student ratio; the spending per pupil and the area high school’s success rate of students who go on to college. Also find out if any after-school programs, extracurricular activities, special education or gifted classes are offered.

5.) Logistics: If you have school-aged children, find out if they can walk to the local school and be sure it is a safe walk. Also find out if there are buses available and if the house you are interested in falls in the bus zone.

By following these tips, you can feel confident that you have completed your homework and you are moving into a school district that has received all A’s!