Buying A Home
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The school dilemma
We are in the very early stages of house hunting but I have an ongoing dilemma I'd love some opinions on. I've lived here in Vegas my entire life and therefore an VERY familiar with the city and the neighborhoods. I always thought I knew the neighborhood I wanted to live in. It's a gated community built in the 70s. Beautiful mature trees, half acre lots (unheard of here in Vegas), ranch style homes. Because of the crash, what was once not really an option for us at this point, is now very much in our price range. Here is the caveat, though...we would have to send our kids to private school. I went to private school k-12, and always assumed my kids would go to the same school, but now I'm second guessing myself. I just don't know if I want to be "locked in" with out the option of public school. Do I give up the dream neighborhood? And before you ask, the public elementary and middle school the neighborhood is zoned for are not an option. I would guess that every family that lives in this community (about 50 houses) send their kids to one of three private schools.
Re: The school dilemma
Financially, are you prepared to fund 2 private school educations? Do you have job security or an emergency fund that could sustain your lifestyle (including schooling) in the event of a job loss?
We live in an area with really good public schools and people typically only send their kids to private if they want a religious influence in their child's education. So, for us, we shopped homes based on which school we wanted our child(ren) to attend. In your situation, if you are not comfortable with the public schools, you really have to weigh the "dream house" against the financial commitment of schooling.
My Valentine Bookends (2~13~13, 2~15~09)
I totally understand! While public is our intention, it is nice to know that private is an option should we choose it. Are there multiple private schools from which to choose if you don't like the first one? Do any of them have special needs options?
Ok, if you scratch only having private school as an option, are their other homes in public school areas that you like? Maybe they aren't in the "dream neighborhood," but still in really nice neighborhoods?
My Valentine Bookends (2~13~13, 2~15~09)
IMO schools trump house anyday.
I would buy what I could afford in the best public school district. You can buy a dream house when your kids are grown if you must have a dream house.
IMO, you have your answer
My Valentine Bookends (2~13~13, 2~15~09)
For us, school district is EVERYTHING. Not only because we care about education quality (no kids for us yet) but because where we are it really factors heavily into your home's value.
I actually work at one of the top rated boarding schools in the country -- if you're really considering private school you'll want to think about the hidden costs as well. Books, pricey field trips and dress clothes add up. There is also pressure to be charitable in addition to paying astronomical tuition.
Yea, I used to work at this particular private school and unfortunately, that's one of the reasons I'm questioning it
I'm a little confused by this wording. Have your children already been diagnosed with special needs? Do you have reason to believe they'll develop? Because the factor that hasn't been addressed, and the one that I believe is the most important, is the quality of the private schools. If they offer your children a better education than the public schools and your children don't have special needs, wouldn't being near them be a huge positive?
You're talking about being limited, but how is being assigned to one public school less limiting than being near 3 private schools? Does your district allow you to switch at will? In theory, your choice for some other property would be more limited because you wouldn't be near the 3 private schools and your only option would be the 1 public school - would you be questioning this in that situation?
Just discussion - I'm not berating or anything, just wondering.
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The Googlesites Paint Bio
Thinking of doing cosmetic updates to a dated home? These were our costs.
Many states are beginning to apply for and be granted waivers from NCLB. At this time, Nevada is not one of them, but I wouldn't count on NCLB transfers for the future.
My Valentine Bookends (2~13~13, 2~15~09)
There are only 2 private schools. If she chooses a home in a good school district, then she has 3 viable options. And, if later down the road, any of her children need special services (speech, learning, behavioral), she has the option of the public school services--and she said that the private schools will not accept students with special needs. Additionally, if finances become an issue, then she is comfortable sending her kids to public school.
It actually provides more options because now she has 2 private and 1 public instead of just 2 private.
My Valentine Bookends (2~13~13, 2~15~09)
I totally get what you're saying; we're house hunting in Vegas too. Good sized lots with nice mature landscaping are mostly in old neighborhoods with deteriorating schools, and good schools are in subdivisions with tiny lots. It's a hard choice to make. And you can't really switch school districts here because there is only one.
This was our thinking. It's why we bought a foreclosure that, three years later, we're STILL not done fixing up (although we can finally see the light at the end of that particular tunnel). But the fact is that we could never have afforded a home in this school district otherwise. Move-in condition homes here that were within our budget simply did not meet our basic needs.
There were lots beautiful houses we looked at and could have afforded in other districts, places that we did really love as far as quality of life was concerned, but they didn't have this school system. DD #1 is now in 3rd grade and DD #2 started K last fall. We are beyond thrilled with the school, and the educational opportunities that our kids are getting. Dealing with the house has been tough, but worth every bit of the time and money in the long run.
This is exactly where I'm at. We're not ruling out private schools, but would like to be in a position that the public school is great in case it's necessary.
Our son does have some deficiencies but we're hopeful he'll be ready for mainstream kinder.
The trouble is, they often catch up for kindy but then fall behind again in later elementary when the expectations jump. My DS has some delays and we are extremely anal about school districts now as a result. We are relocating to OH, and are only considering 3 school districts. 2 of those 3 towns are horrible sprawl-y suburbs full of McMansions. Oh well. Before we dealt with a SN child, we would have bought in the city and prioritized the cute neighborhood. Not any more. And having gone through this, even if DS enters kindy with no IEP, I will be hesitant to ever not live in a good district- he (or any other of our kids) could need an IEP at any point and that is hard to predict. I would rather sacrifice the house.
Also, think about resale. The neighborhood you love sounds very established, but still!
With our move, a suburban district just failed to pass a big levy. We are not looking in that town at all, even though it is ideal in many other ways, bc I just don't want to mess around with a town that doesn't value education. Maybe that is an overreaction, but there are plenty of people like me, who would never even look in that neighborhood if you were trying to sell your house.
Yea, I wouldn't at all be concerned about resale in the dream neighborhood. There hasn't been a single house for sale in there since October. People would sell their kids to move in there. But you're all right, the kid's are def the priority.
Brit, you may know this already, but I'm in the exact situation, right down to the city and locations where we are looking to buy. Here's where I am with the whole thing. I would be terribly upset to forego the dream neighborhood to live in a better school district only to get rezoned to a different school or have the "good schools" take a turn for the worst. I mean, one area where I'm looking is zoned for a school that was considered a good public high school 10 years ago and these days I would never send my kids there. A lot of people will say that school district is a huge deciding factor, but for me, there are just too many "what ifs" that make me put the school district further down on my list. Because LO is so far out of high school and with the way things change in Vegas I'm not convinced that the top schools will stay on top or even that the zonings will stay the same. If we have several homes we like equally and one is in a better school district than the others, the schools will definitely weigh into our decision. Otherwise I'm not so sure it would be a top priority given LO's young age and the chance that things will change.
There are just too many things about your dream neighborhood that you can't find in other parts of town--custom built, large lots, distinctive looks (not the cookie cutter crap you see so often here), central location.
FWIW, we plan to send our son to private school initially and then reevaluate so I'm not as concerned with zoning for elementary schools. Oh, and there's always Las Vegas Academy.
I've been looking for two years and like you, I've lived here many years. The fact is, if you want a large lot in an established neighborhood without the cookie cutter crappy homes, you are extremely limited in your search. Unless of course you are willing to live on the outskirts of town (northwest, north, or old henderson), which for us isn't an option. While there are areas that fit the bill, many are in large guard gated communities with steep HOAs (350 a month+) and at that point the amount you are saving can practically help fund the private school! Go with the neighborhood or you will always regret it. Just my .02.
yeah, I agree. The school districts were #1 in our house search. We ruled out houses immediately if they were not in what we considered a good enough district, and ended up in what is arguably the best school district in our metro area.
What a weird question. Property taxes of those who are childless or retired also go to fund schools. Public school is a social benefit, not a personal benefit.
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