Should I Buy This Home if It's Not In The Best School District?
There are a number of schools in Barrington, Inverness, Palatine, Kildeer and Long Grove that have very good report cards. With focus on the high schools the named schools that many buyers search for are Barrington High School, William Fremd in Palatine, Lake Zurich High School and Adlai Stevenson High School.
In each of the areas the school boundaries play a role in school of attendance and some Barrington children do not attend Barrington Schools. They might go to Algonquin, Wauconda or Lake Zurich. In Hawthorn Woods some children may attend Mundelein and Fremont schools and so on. Every property listed has details of the schools for that property but it is possible that information is not correct. Any buyer looking for a specific school should check with the district office to make sure the details are indeed correct.
Should you buy a home if it's not in the best school district? What is the definition of Best and in whose mind? In truth that is not a question that any Realtor should answer for you. Only you can make that decision. When asked this question recently, here is what I said.
Do your own due diligence about the schools for the property you want to buy. School report cards do not give you a total picture, they are just that, report cards. Schools are a very subjective issue as one parent will prefer one school over another for different reasons than either you or I. Just because a property is not in one of those so called better school districts does not mean you should not buy the property. If you are comfortable with the information you find out about the schools and the house is everything you want, why would you not buy it?
The answer to that might be that for re-sale it is the wrong thing to do. Well let's look at all the properties in the area that fall inside the same school boundaries. Have any sold in the last twelve months? Have any sold in the last six months? Have any sold or gone under contract in the last one to two months. Specifically look at comparable priced homes and in the same or nearby subdivisions to get a true view. If the answer is yes to any of these then clearly it means your house will be re-saleable when the timecomes.
If the school districts are considerably different in their make-up or funding, then just remember this is somewhat factored into the price of properties on each side of the boundary lines. So if you love the house, don't let what others say persuade you or dissuade you, it's your decision.
Corinne Guest
Real Estate in Barrington
Royal Advocate Realty
Info@CorinneGuest.com
(847) 363-3686
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Copyright 2011 Corinne Guest All Rights Reserved * Should I Buy This Home if It's Not In The Best School District? *
Corinne Guest
Realtor & Managing Broker
Royal Advocate Realty, Barrington
Call today 847-363-3686 for real estate and relocation service.
Suburban Real Estate - Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods, Kildeer, Long Grove
Corinne: A very interesting and "slippery" topic you introduce here. One that we, as real estate professionals, need to be very aware of, but cautious with when dispensing any information ... as you know. You state clearly, and well, that the final determination of whether a particular school district is a good one rests squarely on the buyer, not the real estate professional. That cannot be overstated. It is a fact that potential buyers need to be aware of ... and you write a great post addressing that issue.
Gene
Corinne - beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so it truly is up to individual home buyers to decide what is the "best" school district for them in Barrington and surrounding areas. Great post!
Hi Corinne: You have a well-written post here. I really like your blog -- it looks like you provide really solid information about your area on a very consistent basis. Something I aspire to do!