10 U.S. Metro Areas With the Smallest Premiums For Homes in Highly Rated School Zones

In Little Rock, Arkansas, homes in highly rated school zones sell for a median of $237,450. That's about 5% less than the metro's overall median of $250,000, making it the only market in this analysis where a top-rated school zone comes at a discount.

Redfin matched home sales from Jan–June 2026 to the attendance boundary of the zoned public high school they fall in ("school zone"). Zones rated 8-10 on GreatSchools are "highly rated." Only conventional zoned public high schools are included — magnet, charter, and lottery-based districts are excluded. The "typical home" is the median home mappable to a school zone, so highly rated zones are compared against the rest of that same mappable market. Affordability figures (monthly payment, income needed, share of listings affordable) use Redfin's standard methodology: 15% down, 30-year fixed mortgage, taxes/insurance/PMI included, affordable at ≤30% of income. Of the 100 most populous U.S. metros, 81 had sufficient data and are included; national figures pool sales across those 81.
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