A version of this article was originally published on Cityhousecountryhouse.com on 7/2/2018
Your children’s Education can be a big factor in Home Buying
Here is a list of several websites* to use for school ratings:
A word of caution on websites for school ratings
There are a lot of factors that determine a school’s rating score. Many of the big name real estate websites like Realtor.com, Redfin, and Zillow use Greatschools.org for school ratings. It can be very helpful to see which schools are associated with a house you are looking at online. Greatschools.org also recently updated their rating technique which can be found HERE.
From my own experience, I learned you need to look deeper than the number score or grade. Don’t just trust a website to determine if a school will meet your needs.
School Testing
State Assessment Tests vary by state to State. In 2016 , Illinois began using the PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers). There was a lot of controversy and the school scores at many schools became skewed. This is probably why many websites had to adjust their techniques.
I recently found Niche.com and was very impressed with all their information. However, you still have to read the full page. For example, I looked at a high school I was familiar with. The overall grade was a B- which sounded acceptable until you scrolled down to “Academics”. The reading proficiency was 7% and the Math was 4%. That says a lot about the school to me.
Do your Homework – Always verify school information
Before you purchase a home, you can verify the correct schools by looking at your tax bill. This can also tell you if there is an associated Park District and Library. The school district itself can tell you if a given address is in the district and which particular schools your children will attend. This is especially important when there are several schools in one district.
Sometimes the websites are wrong. I have noticed an improvement, but when I bought my house the school information was wrong on the websites and even on the real estate listing sheet. If I had not checked the County tax website, we may not have bought our house. In Lake County, IL you can go here to see your tax bill. You can search by address or PIN number.
Visit the school
Using these websites for school ratings provides an easy score to use as a starting point. Use them as a guide to do further research on the schools. My best advice is to make appointments and visit the schools in person. You will get a better understanding of where your children will be spending their time.
Social media can also help if you are moving from out of state. Join a local group in the area you are thinking about and ask for people’s experiences with the different schools.
Found your dream school? Now let’s go House Hunting…Call or email me today.
*Note: I have no affiliations with any of these rating websites. These are some of the ones I have used in my own personal research.