Austin Has 3rd Highest Share Of 'Great Schools' In U.S.: Report

AUSTIN, TX — Austin has the third highest share of great schools in the U.S., according to a new study.

The ideas of living near a great school is particularly critical among renting families with school children, yielding a decisive factor when searching for a new home, researchers at RENTcafé noted in their report. As a primer, analysts assessed the 30 largest U.S. cities to find the areas which are most convenient for those who want to live nearby a top-rated elementary or middle school, defined in the study as having a GreatSchools.org rating of 8 or higher.

Here are some of the highlights for Austin:

• Austin has 55 high rated schools, accounting for 28 percent of the city's total. At a national level, only two other cities boast a higher share: 30 percent in San Francisco, and 38 percent in San Diego.
• ZIP code 78738 stands out with 7 schools, all top rated. 9 other US ZIPs have a similar or higher number of top-tier schools, with Phoenix, AZ having the most, 11 in its ZIP code 85048.
• Living in a ZIP code with high rated schools can have a significant impact on your renting budget and that can be the case in Austin. The biggest difference is noted in ZIP code 78703, with 3 top-rated schools, where the average rent is $2,500, while across the city, the average is $1,356 for areas without high-tier schools.
• Next in line is ZIP code 78705, with an average rent of $2,343, and 78702, with an average rent of $1,901.
• The most affordable ZIP codes with top rated schools are 78753, where the rent is $1,048 on average, ZIP 78728, with costs of $1,115, and 78731, with prices hovering at $1,174.

Besting Austin on the list overall are San Diego, California, and New York City, ranking highest by share and highest number of great schools, respectively. Four other Texas cities cracked the top 20 list: El Paso, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston in the 11th, 15th, 16th and 17th slots, respectively. Fort Worth also ranked highly, in the 22nd slot.

Read more findings via RentCafe.