Great schools.com is a fantastic link for parents that would like to search their school district rating and compare it to the location that they are moving too.  The easiest way to find the best schools in your neighborhood.

You can compare your individual school be it elementary,middle or high school  You can also search by zip codes and by cities.  You will find test scores and test results by School District, City and each individual school.

The average for the State of California is 500 on the State Testing Scores.  The Test Scores run up to 1000, with Palos Verdes Schools being rated in the high 900"s.  The Palos Verdes Schools are number one in the State of California.  What that means to families relocating to California is basically this-  If you are purchasing a home in a school district that is rated 850 or above that school is about a year ahead of the schools that are scoring in the 500-700's. Ther is a big difference in the quality of education and teachers from Highest rated to even 4th place. 

You will also find that most college preparatory high schools will be scoring 800 or above on the testing scores.

Property Values always run with school district ratings as a rule of thumb.  If you have a school that is rated high the prices of property will be higher accordingly. Not all areas go according to school test scores for property values.  In some areas like Pasadena, home values are still high even though test scores are low.  Many people send their children to private schools in the area because they want to be close to downtown Los Angeles. Homes in the Palos Verdes Unified School District are starting at 900,000.00 and up for a house.  Townhouses are slightly less. Silver Spur is the best elementary school in Palos Verdes currently.

Another important fact to remember is that if you are buying in a school district that is scoring high check the school to make sure that the school has room for your child before you make an offer on a home.  We have a waiting list for some schools in Palos Verdes and the South Bay Area,  I always make sure my clients have checked with the school before they write an offer on a home.  Sometimes the school has room for one child and not another.  So a parent would end up driving to 2 different schools. I have seen some offers that had to cancel and some very upset home buyers that were not advised to check with the schools.  They ended up spending 1 million dollars for a home that was across the street from their new house only to find out that they would have to drive their child to another school because the school across the street has a waiting list.

So make sure you do your homework and work with a qualifed professional to assist you.  Happy House Hunting