Proximity to schools can increase a home’s value by as much as 14.28% in Scotland

As we all know, living in the right postcode can be key to securing a place for your children at your dream school.

In an effort to ensure fair access, schools prioritise a number of factors for admissions but researchers have found that the British school system often relies more heavily on ‘distance from the school’, favouring those who live nearer. 

But did you know that distance from a school can affect the local housing market?

Online Money Advisor wanted to investigate this phenomenon and set out to see where there are price premiums for buying a property within 0.5 miles of a school, and also to identify the schools in Scotland with the most expensive catchment areas.

Key findings

• Glenrothes is the Scottish town with the highest premium for living close to a school, with the average property price within 0.5 miles of a school 14.28% higher than those further away.
• Cambusbarron Primary School in Stirling is the Scottish school with the most expensive catchment area, with the average property within 0.5 miles of the school costing a staggering £432,663.
• Across Scotland as a whole, homes close to schools increased in price by just 1.73%.

https://www.onlinemoneyadvisor.co.uk/content/cost-of-homes-near-schools/#home  

Scottish towns and cities with the highest premiums for living close to a school

We also wanted to find the towns and cities of Scotland where proximity to schools triggered the biggest increase in house prices. To do this, we calculated the average price difference between homes within 0.5 miles of a school and homes more than 0.5 miles away. Here are our results.

Rank	Town/City	Price Difference
1	Glenrothes	+14.28%
2	Edinburgh	+7.78%
3	Greenock	+7.64%
4	Glasgow	+5.88%
5	Aberdeen	+4.25%
6	Paisley	+4.06%
7	Inverness	+1.15%

-House prices are compared to the average price of properties within 0.5 miles with an above 1% price difference

The most expensive school catchment areas in Scotland

It’s no secret that the average house prices vary greatly across the UK. A variety of factors can influence the price of a property, but by exclusively looking at price premiums within school catchment areas we have identified the schools with the most expensive catchment areas in Scotland.

Rank	School	Town/City	Avg house price within 0.5mi
1	Cambusbarron Primary School	Stirling	£432,663
2	East Craigs Primary School	Edinburgh	£420,056
3	Craigmount High School	Edinburgh	£405,580
4	Uddingston Grammar School	Glasgow	£394,800
5	Dunnikier Primary School	Kirkcaldy	£353,295
6	Sunrise Christian School	Glasgow	£348,204
7	St Catherine’s RC Primary School	Edinburgh	£344,772
8	Bucksburn Academy	Aberdeen	£314,779
9	Wallacestone Primary School	Falkkirk	£309,122
10	Livingston Village Primary School	Livingston	£290,500

Scotland less affected by school catchment area premiums compared to other British regions

The study was conducted across England, Wales and Scotland to see where in the country property prices fluctuated the most as a result of proximity to a school. In Wales, a 6.09% price increase for properties near schools was measured overall.

This contrasts to London where demand to live near a school is lesser, with average house prices only being 0.45% higher when located within 0.5 miles of schools. Scotland’s house prices only experience a 1.73% premium when situated 0.5 miles of a school, so is not as affected by the phenomenon as other UK regions.

-Due to insufficient sample sizes, Northern Ireland has not been included in the study.

Methodology

• We examined the prices of 57,708 homes in 232 towns and cities across Great Britain, comparing their price differences separately for 2-, 3-, and 4-bedroom homes. 
• The final ranking was based on the average price difference between homes within 0.5 miles of a school and homes more than 0.5 miles away 
• In addition, we determined which schools in our towns and cities have the most valuable properties nearby by ranking their average prices within 0.5 miles. In this section of the analysis, only two-bedroom, three-bedroom, and four-bedroom homes were considered. Due to this, some wealthy areas with large homes and mansions nearby schools were excluded. 
• Data from Zoopla was used and is accurate as of November 2022.

It is important to note that many factors can influence the price of a property. Our analysis is focused on the location of properties within a school catchment area to determine if there are price premiums for living nearby.

https://www.onlinemoneyadvisor.co.uk/content/cost-of-homes-near-schools/#home