which would you do, if these were options for middle and high school?

[Anonymous]

1) Current 500K house (close to paid off), OK public school cluster (improving, I hear), in neighborhood we really like

2) Current 500K house, excellent private school at about $25K a year, stay in neighborhood we really like

3) Move to 700-800K+ house in excellent public school cluster

We could pull off any of these financially, but there are clearly pros and cons. I think we know which one we are leaning toward but I am curious what others have done in similar circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Option 1.

[Anonymous]

25K a year x6 = 150K. Unless you love your private, I would move.

[Anonymous]

1

[Anonymous]

2, then 3.

[Anonymous]

We're doing #2. House is paid off and the commute cannot be beat.

[Anonymous]

Option 1 then maybe option 2. Option 3 is the most expensive and u may not like the neighborhood or ur actual neighbors. More expensive house doesn't always mean a better life.

[Anonymous]

2

[Anonymous]

give option 1 a try

[Anonymous]

try option 1, with 2 a possibility if needed.

[Anonymous]

3

[Anonymous]

OP here -- you guys are helpful! Crowdsourcing my family's future is fun

[Anonymous]

#3

Seems like a no-brainer to me. Why waste money on private when you could have an excellent public? Plus, there are lots of great neighborhoods out there. Who's to say you won't like a new one even more?

[Anonymous]

To answer that hypothetical question: the reason we currently like our neighborhood so much is partly location but partly that our kids have lots of friends they have grown up with here. So even if a move is relatively nearby, it would involve leaving friends on our current street, school, pool, activities, etc. Not to say 3) isn't an option, but that's one of the "cons."

[Anonymous]

OP, how do your kids feel about the decision? Any idea what they want?