Local Schools Are Critical to Millennial Home Buyers Realtor.com® Back-to-School Data Shows

SAN JOSE, Calif.-- Millennial buyers are ready to call the suburbs home if that means quality elementary schools. Just in time for the back-to-school season, realtor.com® today reveals the most popular cities and schools viewed using its search-by-school feature, which allows people to explore homes for sale based on specific schools and school districts.

Millennials – people born between 1980 and 2000 – are less likely than other generations to compromise on school districts when searching for a home.  Fifty-two percent of millennials report that school districts are a deal breaker in their home search, compared with 31 percent of all buyers, according to a recent realtor.com® study.

Most of top 10 cities where people research the most school information on realtor.com® are located in affordable, suburban communities outside of larger urban areas. Generally, the suburbs attract younger buyers because of their close proximity to urban job markets and less expensive housing. In June, the top 10 neighborhoods include: 1) Bethel, N.C.; 2) Gadsden, Ala.; 3) Agoura, Calif. (near Los Angeles, Calif.); 4) Kensington, Md. (near Washington D.C.); 5) Greenwood Village, Colo. (near Denver, Colo.); 6)Greenacres, Fla. (near West Palm Beach, Fla.); 7) Watauga, Texas (near Fort Worth, Texas); 8) La Crescent, Minn.; 9) North Hollywood, Calif. (near Los Angeles, Calif.) and 10) Fairburn, Ga. (near Atlanta, Ga.).  

Realtor.com® search-by-school data also reveals that elementary schools are on the minds of those looking for homes. Eight of the top 10 most popular schools viewed on realtor.com® (see chart below) include kindergarten through fifth grade. This indicates that the majority of people who research schools either have young children or expect to start a family when they buy their next home.

"Local schools are clearly more important to specific population segments – such as today's millennials, who either have or are planning to have children. High-ranking schools can have a positive impact on home values over time as new families pay a premium for access to better schools," said Jonathan Smoke, chief economist for realtor.com®, the leader in providing consumers with the most accurate U.S. residential listings online*

The realtor.com® search-by-school feature helps buyers quickly and easily filter accurate local school information so they can decide which homes meet their family's educational needs. Some of its key features include:

• GreatSchools data displayed for each school including: parent ratings, student to teacher ratio, test scores and a Great Schools ranking
• An interactive map shows GreatSchools ratings and assignment boundaries for each school in a local area
• Homes can be searched by public schools or school districts
• The 'Nearby Schools' button on the realtor.com® mobile app uses a Global Positioning Systems (GPS) to find schools in the home buyers desired neighborhood.

Most Viewed Schools on realtor.com® in June

Rank	School	Location
1	Lacrescent-Hokah Elementary School	Houston County, Minn.
2	James Catholic School	Etowah County, Ala.
3	Pine View School	Sarasota County, Fla.
4	Harvest Christian Academy	Tarrant County, Texas
5	Hendy Avenue School	Chemung County, N.Y.
6	Bethel Elementary School	Pitt County, N.C.
7	Celebration School	Osceola County, Fla.
8	Viera High School	Brevard County, Fla.
9	Malibu High School	Los Angeles County, Calif.
10	Erpenbeck Elementary School	Boone County, Ky.

Cities with the Most School Views on realtor.com® in June

			Median Listing Price	% YY	Total Listings	% YY	Median Age of Inventory	% YY
National			$215,000	7.55%	1,893,907	-0.92%	76 days	-5.00%
City	MSA	MSA Search Rank	Median Listing Price	% YY	Total Listings	% YY	Median Age of Inventory	% YY
Bethel, N.C.	Greenville N.C.	N/A*
Gadsden, Ala	Gadsden, Ala	N/A*
Agoura, Calif.	Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif.	7	$499,000	8.48%	20,013	8.49%	54 days	12.50%
Kensington, Md.	Washington, DC-MD-VA-WV(MD)	41	$325,000	9.24%	10,302	-1.05%	61 days	-12.86%
Greenwood Village, Colo.	Denver, Colo.	21	$352,413	19.46%	6,493	-13.99%	21 days	-22.22%
Greenacres, Fla.	West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.	13	$269,000	14.47%	15,084	-12.90%	83 days	-23.85%
Watauga, Texas	Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	11	$196,900	9.39%	7,518	-13.22%	48 days	-7.69%
La Crescent, Minn.	La Crosse, WI-MN(MN)	N/A*	$175,000	2%	124	-14%	105 days	3%
North Hollywood, Calif.	Los Angeles-Long Beach, Calif.	7	$499,000	8.48%	20,013	8.49%	54 days	12.50%
Fairburn, Ga.	Atlanta, Ga.	6	$209,500	13.30%	38,418	-8.96%	69 days	-8.00%

Did You Know: The History of the Sewing Machine

An invention that has had a profound impact on our use of fabrics and on the nation's economy was patented on this date in 1851 — the home sewing machine, developed by Isaac Singer. The idea of the sewing machine — and some working models — went back to nearly a century before 1851. But Singer's simple, sturdy machine was the first to be a commercial success. While far fewer people sew at home as avidly as was done in the 19th century, the modern and industrial versions of Singer's machines are the thread that runs through the nation's nearly $150 billion a year apparel and piece goods industry. Some 15,000 establishments employ about 180,000 workers in the manufacture of clothing. You can find current data on the country's economy by downloading the America's Economy mobile application at www.census.gov/mobile.

Top Places Where Mom-and-Pop Landlords Make the Most Money

SEATTLE -- Zillow today named the Oklahoma City area the top place where mom-and-pop landlords stand to make the most money on their rental property on a month-to-month basis.  A Zillow Rentals analysisi looked at the top 50 U.S metros to determine which areas provide the best short-term return on investment for landlords. Rental property owners in theOklahoma City metro area can expect to profit $536 per month on the median home when comparing anticipated rental income versus their assumed monthly mortgage payment.

Mom-and-pop landlords are homeowners who have turned their personal home into a rental rather than selling it when they move.

Zillow has also named the best places for landlords interested in long-term profitsii. When looking at rental income, tax benefits and accumulated home equity (thanks to rapid home value appreciation), landlords in San Jose, California, make the most money: $8,927per month, or $107,122 per year. The majority of this "profit" is derived from earned but unrealized equity distributed evenly each month over the next six years. Most, if not all, of this profit will not be realized until the landlord sells the property.

"When deciding if they should sell their home or rent it out, most mom-and-pop landlords are primarily concerned with whether or not they can cover their mortgage payment each month – they simply can't absorb monthly losses like professional investors," said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries. "However, the greatest returns are actually in markets like San Jose and San Francisco where there are short-term monthly losses, but the long-term earned equity makes them the best markets to invest in."

Nationally, the Zillow Rent Index has increased 2.5 percent since June 2013 and 9.1 percent since June 2011. On a local level, the Zillow Rent Index has gone up as much as two to three times that amount over the past year in rental hotspots such as metro Chicago(+6.3 percent) and San Francisco (+11 percent).

The full list of best places to own a rental property can be found by visiting Zillow Real Estate Research.

Top 10 Markets for Short-term Financial Gain (difference between rent and mortgage payment on the median home, accounting for property and income taxes, maintenance and vacancy)

Rank	Metro Area	Short-term profit (monthly)	Short-term profit (annually)
1.	Oklahoma City	$536	$6,431
2.	Miami-Fort Lauderdale, Fla.	$515	$6,184
3.	Tulsa, Okla.	$396	$4,753
4.	Cincinnati	$385	$4,621
5.	Denver	$355	$4,258
6.	Rochester, N.Y.	$349	$4,182
7.	Tampa, Fla.	$287	$3,448
8.	Dallas-Fort Worth, Tex.	$264	$3,166
9.	Indianapolis	$251	$3,014
10.	Memphis, Tenn.	$242	$2,901
11-50	Can be found by visiting: http://www.zillow.com/research/landlord-profit-7357/

Top 10 Markets for Long-term Financial Gain (includes home equity gains, tax benefits, and the difference between monthly rental income and mortgage payments after holding onto the property for six years on the median home. Also accounting for property/income taxes, maintenance and vacancy)

Rank	Metro Area	Long-term profit (monthly)	Long-term profit (annually)
1.	San Jose, Calif.	$8,927	$107,122
2.	San Francisco	$6,078	$72,939
3.	Los Angeles	$4,328	$51,938
4.	San Diego	$4,165	$49,983
5.	Riverside, Calif.	$3,659	$43,907
6.	New York	$3,179	$38,147
7.	Boston	$3,009	$36,109
8.	Seattle	$2,861	$34,335
9.	Sacramento, Calif.	$2,694	$32,328
10.	Honolulu	$2,512	$30,144
11-50	Can be found by visiting: http://www.zillow.com/research/landlord-profit-7357/