With almost every buyer we represent, the topic of school districts is brought up. I would say the time when it comes up the least is when a buyer is buying a condo in downtown Austin. So, just how important is this question exactly?
Very important.
Here’s why:
There are neighborhoods in Austin that are divided by public school boundaries. Homes on one side of the street will feed into one school district, and the houses on the other side will feed into another one! To further complicate things, the home that you buy needs to feed into the “preferred” district by the majority of home buyers in that area or else it could adversely affect your resale values. If you are contemplating buying a home right now in the Austin area, we hope that you have you put considerable thought into the school district and how it could affect your property values.
(The new 2014-2015 Austin School Ratings guide is now available on our Austin Home Search by School District page!)
Typically, these are the scenarios that buyers fall into regarding their importance of schools:
a) The buyer care very much about school district, whether it is for the ratings or because they want their kids to be enrolled at a specific school. Our search will almost always be narrowed down right away by school district or even a single school by name. Sometimes getting into a particular school is more important to them than the finish-outs in a home!
b) The buyer doesn’t care about school districts at all because they do not have children that will attend. We quickly educate them about why the school district needs to be important to them because of resale value.
c) Buyer is buying a second home here in Austin. They don’t plan to live here year-round, so they will not have children going to school. However, they are concerned about the school district for two reasons: they could potentially move here full-time one day and regardless, there’s the resale value issue. With so many of Austin’s neighborhoods going through a transitional period (older homes being bulldozed and newer ones replacing them), it is important to know more about the schools then just being in the “trendy” hot new location.
There are so many factors involved with choosing the right home in Austin besides just the school districts: a few of which include crime stat information, proximity to shopping, medical facilities, infrastructure, and so much more. It is vitally important for you to have someone representing your best interests that can help paint the full picture for you. Call me today and I will help get you started in the right direction!
