5 Best Practices for Setting the Price on a Home in a Good School District
For parents across the U.S., when hunting for a new place to live, they consider the school district in which that home is located. Some want to keep their children in a school district they already love rather than uprooting the family. Others want to locate to a district they see as more desirable due to sports, curriculum or special programs.
Homebuyers are willing to pay a premium for a home in a good school district, with one in 10 homebuyers willing to pay as much as 20 percent more for that home than a comparable one outside of that district, according to a 2013 realtor.com Back to School survey of 1,000 prospective homebuyers. When setting the price on a home in a good school district, consider the following five tips to help attract serious buyers without pricing out others.
[Read: Buying a Home? 6 Ways to Successfully Snoop a Neighborhood.]
1. Take a Look at Statistics
One in every five buyers would pay as much as 10 percent more for a home in a favored district, and one in every 10 would pay 20 percent more, according to the realtor.com survey. However, the fact is that a significant portion of buyers would not pay these inflated prices for a home simply because it was in a specific district. If you raise your price too high, you may limit the number of people who will consider purchasing your home, and this alone can drive the price down instead of up.
2. Know the Area
What are houses similar to yours going for in your area? This is likely a good indicator of what you can get out of your house, assuming the two are in the same shape with similar upgrades. Ask your real estate agent to a run market analysis for you, or use online tools to do a quick search. Since you want to price your home based on the school district, you'll want to ask the agent to run the analysis based on that factor.
[Read: How to Identify the Right Buyer for Your Home.]
3. Consider the Type of School
It's important to understand the types of schools in your district. Are there multiple options? This will make your home more attractive to buyers because some families will desire a public school, some a private and others a charter school. Century 21 Core Partners in York, Pennsylvania, breaks down the six types of schools on its website:
-- Neighborhood public schools: Are convenient and create a sense of community.
-- Public magnet schools: Hone in on a specific skill, like science or performing arts. Typically, students do not need to live in-district to attend.
-- Charter schools: Operate outside of the public education system, but are funded by the public. Typically open to any district.
-- Private secular schools: Charge tuition and can admit any student they desire.
-- Private religious schools: Charge tuition and can also admit from any district.
-- Online schools: Can be private or public. Tends not to be based on district.
Since the main option that considers the student's home address when determining enrollment is the neighborhood public school, take the time to consider how desirable the public schools in your community are when deciding on a price.
4. Measure the Distance From School
A home close enough for kids to walk to and from school is often considered an added bonus in a district that's highly ranked. However, how far you think is okay for a child to walk and how far another parent thinks is okay may be two different numbers. A better measure may be how many children are actually walking home in the afternoons in your neighborhood. Are there a scattered few, or dozens?
[Read: The Best Places to Live for Community Pride.]
5. Keep Buyers' Priorities in Mind
When it comes to a buying decision, the majority of parents choose what is best for their child -- in the realtor.com survey, 62 percent of respondents said they'd forgo a spa or pool, 50 percent easy shopping access and 44 percent extra space in the home for the right schools. Parents, quite simply, put their children's education first.
If your home is located in a highly sought-after school district, you can likely set the price a bit higher than if it were in a district that is less desirable. However, be cautious not to price yourself out of the market -- there will be other people out there also selling their homes, and your school district isn't the only option in the world to parents. A nice balance between getting a high asking price and not being so greedy that you price yourself out of showings is something a savvy real estate agent can help with.
More From US News & World Report
