Looking to buy into one of your state’s top school zones?
Well, prepare to pay a pretty penny, as new data reveals the staggering amounts some people are having to fork out to do just that.
PRD analysis of the country’s top Government schools as ranked by bettereducation.com.au has revealed that while it can be expensive to buy into our most popular schools, it is possible to get in on a budget.
And there’s quite a diversity in the prices you could pay.
Let’s start with primary schools:
Melbourne families are being locked out of the city’s top public school zones, with affordable houses having vanished from every top-ranked primary catchment.
PRD Real Estate analysis has also found only Seabrook and Point Cook remained below the Greater Melbourne benchmark for families trying to buy a house in a top public secondary school zone.
Meanwhile buyers in Glen Waverley and Mt Waverley generally need $1.5m to $1.7m to access the region’s highly regarded educators.
PRD Real Estate classed areas as affordable where their median house or unit price was below the Greater Melbourne median.
Parts of Seabrook and Point Cook were the only spots where median house prices of $776,500 and $823,500 respectively still provided affordable access to sought-after Alamanda K-9 College.
Glen Waverley Secondary College is among the top public school zones where PRD Real Estate found no affordable house or unit options under the Greater Melbourne benchmark. Picture: Facebook
Schools where PRD Real Estate found no affordable house or unit options included Glen Waverley Secondary College, Highvale Secondary College, Mt Waverley Secondary College, Balwyn Primary School and Serpell Primary School.
Even unit affordability is tightening, with only five primary school catchments and 11 secondary school areas offering median unit prices below the Melbourne benchmark while still providing access to top public schools.
Brisbane parents are paying staggering premiums of up to $430,000 to buy their way into the city’s top public school zones, turning elite catchments into a real estate battleground.
Industry insiders say ‘zone-banking’ parents are purchasing homes inside state school catchments years before their children enrol, locking average earners out and treating the public education system as a high-growth property play.
Research from PRD shows the cheapest way into the city’s top-ranked public school zones is to swap the backyard for a balcony, with unit buyers securing access for around $600,000.
The city’s most affordable entry point is an apartment in Chelmer, where a median price of $557,500 secures a spot at Indooroopilly State High School.
Place Sunnybank agent Owen Chen with the new owners of a Calamvale home in Melissa Tang and her children Chloe and Tace. Photo: Supplied
Inner-city buyers can target units in Bowen Hills ($604,000) for Kelvin Grove State College, while parents of primary-aged children can snag one in Nathan ($650,000) to guarantee a spot at Robertson State School.
Meanwhile, units and townhouses in Mansfield recorded a 67.4 per cent spike in annual growth to hit a median of $815,000 — around half the cost of a house there.
Savvy buyers can save big by shopping around in SA too.
In Linden Park Primary, in the heart of the eastern suburbs, you could pay $2.36m for a median-priced Tusmore house.
You could also pay $1.485m for a Glen Osmond house, saving yourself a considerable sum.
Or, if you’re prepared to give unit or apartment living a try, you can get into the Hazelwood Park zoned for the school for just $600,000.
Rose Park Primary’s pretty exclusive, and here, for houses, Rose Park is a better option than Toorak Gardens’ $2m median by about $200,000, while a Rose Park unit or apartment will set you back just $630,000.
There are good savings to be made in its top-rated public high school zones too.
Take Glenunga International High School.
Sure, you could pay $2.05m for a median-priced Malvern house, but if you really wanted to drive your dollar further, you could buy in Eastwood where houses have a median of just $1.128m.
Glenunga International High School. Supplied
Unit buyers can save even more by picking up a Malvern unit, which carries a median price of just $512,500.
There are similar savings to be made for those prepared to shop around and compromise in the Marryatville High School zone.
Nothing’s stopping you from paying the $2.36m for a median-priced Tusmore home, but if all you’re looking to do is get into the school zone, you can do it for $1.0925 in Evandale.
A Joslin unit will get you in for just $442,000.
PRD Real Estate chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo said the amount needed to buy a house in a prized school zone was significant.
“Especially for primary school, parents must be prepared to spend more money on their house in order to be within the catchment of a top school,” she said.
“This relaxes a little bit for secondary school, however it is mostly because there is a wider catchment area and thus more suburbs to choose from (and gives a wider price range) as opposed to suburbs near a top school having a lower median house price.
“There is more of a chance for affordability if you are willing to consider units, however … units are not always practical.
Many parents choose where to live based on where they want their kids to go to school. Picture: Getty Images
“There are some affordable options still, as per what the data shows, which gives parents some hope, however this is limited and with the way that the Adelaide market is going, parents are on borrowed time.”
Dr Mardiasmo said school zones was a determining factor for many when househunting.
“It is definitely a factor, but we have seen a variety in where it sits within the priority list,” she said.
“Overall though for families it usually sits as number two or three; with items like affordability, safety, and having family nearby being the other factors.
Dr Mardiasmo said buyers were conscious of price when buying into a school zone, but it wasn’t a determining factor for all.
“This is almost split into two, depending on how important getting the child into a school zone is,” she said.
“If it is of highest priority, price is secondary; with the knowledge that the suburb will remain a hot spot and high demand.
“Yes, they commit to a higher level of debt, however the appreciation in value over the years is more beneficial than the higher level of debt.
“If it’s second or third priority, then the price consideration/consciousness increases.
“These parents tend to look for the most affordable way to get into the school – for example going for a unit or renting, to minimise ongoing costs.
PRD Real Estate chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo. Supplied
Dr Mardiasmo said she expected buyers to become increasingly price sensitive as cost-of-living pressures exacerbate.
“At the moment price sensitivity has increased, because cost of living has increased exponentially,” she said.
“The good thing about living within a catchment is that many other kids from school also live nearby, so you can do play dates that are quite close and share resources; all of which reduces costs.”
Dr Mardiasmo said with uncertainty around fuel prices she wouldn’t be surprised if living closer to schools became more front of mind for buyers.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if it does, especially as kids can walk and bike to school,” she said.
“It also fosters that community feeling with other school kids and increases the possibility of shared resources costs – for example shipping costs of school products, carpooling, and others.
“That said, it also still depends on the working needs and arrangements of the parent.
“If the parent still needs to go work in the CBD or somewhere far in a car, and they don’t have hybrid or electric, then the parents still need to spend money on transport costs.”
Education plays a huge part in where people choose to live. Picture: Getty Images
South Australia’s Williams Real Estate sales agent Marina Ormsby is currently selling a property at 201/82 Osmond Terrace, Norwood zoned for Norwood Primary and Marryatville High said she had seen buyers target properties specifically for the school zone they are in.
“It’s very important to them because it allows families to get their children into their desired schools and feel part of a community and a network,” she said.
Marina Ormsby at a home she is selling at 201/82 Osmond Terrace, Norwood, which is zoned for Norwood Primary and Marryatville High. Picture: Ben Clark
“People definitely pay more for a property near a good school, and we see people buying properties which will be investments in the short term and in the longer term they will live there when their children are of school age.
“It’s one of the first things family buyers look at – it’s in their top three deciding factors as to whether they are buying or not.”
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