Washington Post reporter doing story on how schools influence home buying

[Anonymous]

I am a regular freelance reporter for the Washington Post's Real Estate section and am writing a story about the role the neighborhood schools play in choosing a home. I'm looking for a few parents to interview about the subject. Did you choose an area primarily for the school? Did you decide to pay more to be in the boundaries for the school you wanted? Are you considering a move to be in the school or system you prefer?

I'm looking for people for whom this is an important issue as well as for those it isn't. I'd love to hear your stories. The only caveat is, unlike DCUM, I have to use your name. Please e-mail [e-mail], and we can set up a time to talk. The story is slated to run in late August, and I need to talk to people by August 10 or so.

[Anonymous]

Sounds really fascinating - another story about snooty moms and dads from McLean and Bethesda who volunteer that they just had to be in the Langley or Whitman districts. Yawn.

[Anonymous]

It sounds like the OP is looking for people for whom finding elite schools isn't an issue as well.

[Anonymous]

I agree this seems like a silly idea for a story. Of course,schools matter, but most of the public schools in this area are good. This article is the type of drivel that runs every year or so in the Washingtonian, but the editors at the Post will kill it if they have a lick of sense.

[Anonymous]

Seems like a favorite topic of conversation on DCUM, though.

[Anonymous]

I felt like there was definite zip code pressure at Beauvoir, because if you were not near the school or most of the parents who sent there, playdates were going to be much more difficult for your child. But once they moved (and were older) the school became the center of activities, and the home was much less important.

[Anonymous]

I moved into my neighborhood for the specific public elem-mid-high school pyramid and the special programs these schools offered that I felt were perfect for my kids. Sacrificed a lot to get here. I don't think I am the only one making similar decisions....

[Anonymous]

This isn't a silly idea for a story! It's how families with school-age children conduct their house searches. Realtors do their best to keep up with neighborhoods schools for this very reason.

[Anonymous]

...but most of the public schools in this area are good. [/quote wrote:

??? DCPS is the ranked the worst in the country. There are a couple of okay schools like Mann and Janny, to say "most" public schools are good?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved into my neighborhood for the specific public elem-mid-high school pyramid and the special programs these schools offered that I felt were perfect for my kids. Sacrificed a lot to get here. I don't think I am the only one making similar decisions....

The boundary wars in Fairfax County cost the public a lot of money. Bonds, construction, additions. FCPS built an unused addition at Westfield, built at Langley near the arlington County line to bus in people who live in Herndon almost on the Loudoun county line. Now are building the South County middle school after saying NO ROOM at Lake Braddock. Then doing a boundary process 1 year later for Lake braddock to take in more students. Now these are county wide school districts - FCPS and MONTCO - so buying a house for a particular school should be a partial consideration based on geographic factors NOT a permanent fact like the City of Falls Church that has 1 high school.

That is a story the post should write along with the excess costs to citizens.

[Anonymous]

Agreed. The Post's coverage of these types of issues typically is inept.

Periodically, there are puffy real estate articles that talk abuot how a particular school district (Yorktown/Langley/Whitman) attracted a family.

Then, when the School Boards redistrict to send families to less desirable schools, such as South Lakes in Reston, the Metro reporters such as Mark Fisher write stupid pieces that treat all the parents who object to the redistrictings as closet racists.

The Post never gets these stories right because the reporters don't really understand the neighborhoods they are writing about. Most of them are privileged DC residents who send their kids to private school or live in tony sections of Montgomery County. They don't have a clue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved into my neighborhood for the specific public elem-mid-high school pyramid and the special programs these schools offered that I felt were perfect for my kids. Sacrificed a lot to get here. I don't think I am the only one making similar decisions....

Ditto. And my experience was to find out that despite the hype these schools sucked and off to private we went. But I still love my home, so it wasn't a total loss.

[Anonymous]

I'm with you, PP: I bought in a particular school district (after much research, etc) and then, SURPRISE!!, the school was utterly wrong for my kid. Don't know if another public would have been better, but in the end, we went with private. Rather than moving again and being wrong again.

[Anonymous]

we moved out of dc to bethesda and realized after the fact that although our small elementary school is popular, its run down and in desperate need of renovation. if only we had known to 'tour' the schools before moving...most of my neighbors don't tour the school until kindergarden coffee...the schools are different at the elementary level in terms of facilities, gyms, art classrooms (or lack thereof), etc.

[Anonymous]

We moved into a neighborhood in Bethesda from DC to have the option of the public school.

The area where we lived before was not known for having good public schools. So, when we were looking to buy a house, we wanted to have a 'good' public school option, even though I loved the neighborhood we were in. If that neighborhood had better schools reputation, we would have definitely stayed there.