Average property prices in the postal districts of the top 30 state schools in England, defined as those secondary schools that achieved the best GCSE results1 in 2012, were on average £31,490 or 12% higher than the neighbouring locations in their county, according to the research from Lloyds Bank.
It also found that nine of the 30 top state schools are in locations that command a house price premium of over £80,000 compared to their surrounding locations.
Homes in the postal district of the Henrietta Barnett School in North London have the largest premium with homes trading at a premium of 87% or £402,600 to the average house price in neighbouring areas.
Homes within the postal district of Tiffin Girls' School and Tiffin Boys’ School in Kingston upon Thames command the second highest premium with house prices in the postal district of KT2 at a premium of 51% or £207,591 compared to the average for the borough.
However, 12 of England's top 30 state schools are in locations where the average property price is below the average of those in neighbouring areas.
For example, with an average price of £94,843, properties in the postal district of King Edward VI Handsworth School in Birmingham are 42% or £67,738 below the county average.
In cash terms, the largest discount can be found in the area close to both Kendrick School and Reading School where the average house price in RG1 of £202,721 is £108,033 lower than the county average.
The postal districts of the top performing secondary state schools in six of the nine English regions command a house price premium compared to their county average. The North West has the largest premium with average house prices in the postal districts of the top 10 state schools in the region trading 28% or £43,142 above the average house price in their county. This is followed by Yorkshire and the Humber with a premium of 18% and London with a premium of 15%.
In contrast, homes in the East Midlands that are close to the best performing state schools are, on average, 6% lower than in neighbouring locations. Average property prices are also below those of surrounding areas in the South West by 4% and the South East by 3%.
The research report says that those on average earnings are finding it difficult to purchase a property close to many of the best state schools. The average house price of £295,972 in the postal districts of the 30 best performing state schools is 8.8 times average gross annual earnings of £33,740. This is significantly higher than the average across England of 7.3 times average gross annual earnings.
Homes within the postal district of the Henrietta Barnett School, the most expensive in the survey, are the least affordable with the typical property price of £863,340 in this part of north London at 20.6 gross average annual earnings in the area. Houses in the postal district of the Tiffin Girls' School and the Tiffin School are the second least affordable at 13.3.
In contrast, properties in the postal district of King Edward VI Handsworth School in Birmingham, the least expensive in the survey at £94,843, are the most affordable with a house price to earnings ratio of 3.3.
‘All parents want to ensure their children have access to the best schools, so it is not surprising that homes in areas close to the top performing state schools typically command a significant premium over neighbouring areas,’ said Nitesh Patel, housing economist at Lloyds Bank.
‘However, with the availability of suitable homes in short supply, high demand has led to average prices in many of these areas being out of reach for many buyers on average earnings,’ added Patel.
