When purchasing a home with a young family often parents will search for one that is within the boundaries of the best schools in the area. After all, what parent does not want their child to benefit from the highest quality education possible?

A survey conducted by the National Association of Realtors shows that more than half of homebuyers with children under 18 noted living in a school district was an influencing factor as to where they chose to live and purchase a home. It is not uncommon for homes within quality school boundaries to come with a higher price tag though.

“Research conducted by National Economic Research also found that every dollar increase per student of state aid correlated to a $20 increase in home value.” – Ashford Realty Colorado Springs Realtors®

Noticing the higher quality of school tends to come with a higher price tag on surrounding homes that are zoned for that school. But how do you know if it is worth it to live within those school boundaries?

How to determine whether a high-value school district is worth the higher price of a home

“It is shown that about six in 10 homebuyers are willing to go over their set home purchasing a budget for a house they truly love. 30% of respondents from the survey that showed the Stata said that location was the most important factor when searching for the perfect house.” – Amar Realtor in Milpitas CA

But is paying a higher mortgage worth being within the boundaries for a better school? For some, it very well could be but it could also add up to higher cost very quickly. For example, the difference between a 30-year mortgage on a $400,000 home and a $300,000 home is around $2200 a year. This also does not take into consideration the higher cost of property taxes in more desirable areas and the extra home insurance or a need for a higher down payment.

Related – 8 Creative Ways to Meet New Neighbors

Take a moment to truly consider what criteria are most important for you and your family and a home

You could look up the current rankings for a desirable school and much of the time these rankings will be based on test scores and how they perform academically but it only tells a very small portion of the story where the success of your individual child is concerned.

Other important factors that receive less attention when it comes to school statistics are the amount of money they spent per student and the overall diversity of the school. You want to get a feel for how a school truly is where the daily life culture is concerned as well.

A school could be performing very well as far as test scores could go but your child may find that they do not fit in with the teaching style or other aspects of the everyday culture in the school including what students are interested in and what extracurricular activities are offered.

More: 9 Attributes of the Most Desirable Neighborhoods.

Beyond looking at a school ranking for how many points out of 10 they receive from Great Schools or what grade they receive from niche.com, make sure to read further and find the parent and student reviews of the schools. Often the two mentioned websites will include these or you could look for online discussion forums for the particular school.

It is also a good idea to connect with other parents and get an honest insight as to how their children really love the school. Sometimes you can find local parents through Facebook groups and other social media sites with accounts for the booster club or the PTA.

The bottom line is you want to really do your research on a school even if it is considered high quality and the home prices around it reflect that it is desirable to be in to make sure that your child really will be happy there. You don’t want it to end up in buyer’s remorse when your child is not in love with the high-quality school.