Realtor.com® has launched a new feature that narrows buyers’ home search down to neighborhoods that include certain elementary, middle, or high schools. House hunters can now enter the name of a school into a search box on the website and view a map with a pin that shows the school name and location along with homes for sale nearby.
“Searching for homes by school has been the top requested feature by our users, and it showcases the importance of schools on homebuying decisions,” says Chung Meng Cheong, chief product officer for realtor.com®. “Our new school search feature makes it easy for those who are already familiar with a community to find homes within specific district boundaries. It takes us one step further in our mission to make all things home simple, efficient, and enjoyable.”
Twenty-two percent of realtor.com® users ages 35 to 44 identified being near a good school as one of their top reasons to move, according to a realtor.com® report in April. Nearly half of all buyers with children under 18 say they are influenced by the quality of the school district in their neighborhood choice, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ 2016 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.
The school feature is among several recent tools realtor.com® has announced, including Matterport 3-D virtual tours on select listings; local community pages that include market trends, commute times, and recommended homes; and the addition of Yelp reviews on neighborhood amenities, nearby shopping, and restaurants.
Source: “Find the Home of Your Dreams Near Your Favorite School With School Search,” realtor.com® (July 5, 2017)
