How Important are local schools to you?

Question

How important are the local Elementary, Middle, and High Schools to you when you're looking at Buy & Hold / Flip properties?

I occasionally find a nice community with a quaint neighborhood that appears to be a good location. The Crime is low. The rents are competitive. The price-to-rent ratio is good. It's a place I could live. By all metrics, it seems like an area worth looking into. But then I research the schools. 2/10, 3/10, or No Data is what I have to work with.

How important the local schools to you?

My marks are 3/2+ , 1200 sq.ft +, in Class C neighborhoods or better.  You'd think better schools would appeal to small families, right?

What do you think?

Jeff Morelock · Answer

Buyers are still asking about schools, but not quite as much as they used to.

Adam Scheetz · Answer

@Annette Schneider thanks for the insight. I'm looking at a Duplex that will cash flow, but it's rural and the surrounding schools are 4/10 at best. But it's also not a family tenant pool for this particular deal.

Annette Schneider · Answer

In general, communities with good schools have higher real estate appreciation and have higher rental demand. Good families flee from troubled school districts making it harder to find good tenants or sell for top dollar. There are exceptions for areas near higher education, downtown or nightlife steps away type of preferred community.