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My husband and I are contemplating a move from NJ to Charleston SC for the many reasons that people post about. One area I could use some more information is regarding school systems across the area. From what I am reading, it seems like SUmmerville has a strong district as well as Mount Pleasant but are there any others? And if anyone could provide additional information on the ones listed i'd be grateful as well. We would be making this move to lower our cost of living as well so it would be helpful if any insight could also be provided for average cost of 3-4 bedroom home with 2-2.5 baths for these districts. Thanks a lot in advance.
You are correct in that Dorchester District 2 (Summerville) and Mt. Pleasant schools are good. Charleston Co. and Hanahan have options as well depending on grade level or whether you are interested in charter and magnet schools. Check a school rating site like Great Schools to narrow down choices.
As for average prices for that type home, I'm sure the Realtors will respond with accurate info but off the top of my head:
Summerville DD2: $250K
Mt. Pleasant: $400K
There are many variables.
Do you know where you'll be working or what kinds of things you want to be near?
My husband and I are contemplating a move from NJ to Charleston SC for the many reasons that people post about. One area I could use some more information is regarding school systems across the area. From what I am reading, it seems like SUmmerville has a strong district as well as Mount Pleasant but are there any others? And if anyone could provide additional information on the ones listed i'd be grateful as well. We would be making this move to lower our cost of living as well so it would be helpful if any insight could also be provided for average cost of 3-4 bedroom home with 2-2.5 baths for these districts. Thanks a lot in advance.
Best school district in the county is in Summerville. It was once one of the absolute top school districts in the nation. Most are pretty bad to awful depending on where you live. Hanahan used to be good and possibly Sullivan's Island, Isle of Palms, etc. but check out the last two. Summerville is still doing well. Many people that want to ensure a good education, use private schools. I did.
Summerville is in Dorcehster District 2. So it is the top district in that county but also the larger one by a mile.
Charleston County has a county wide district- so while not as strong as DD2, plenty of attendance areas are actually much stronger. Sullivan's and Isle of Palms are not stand alone districts- they share an elementary school and then feed into Mt Pleasant schools for middle and high school.
If we are going to be perfectly honest the school rankings pretty closely correlate to how wealthy the attendance areas are. And the magnate schools in Charleston county tend to be ranked/score through the roof but that should be expected when you can cherry pick kids from across the county.
Privates can be a mixed bag and there is a definite pecking order in terms of their reputations, academic stringency, and social ranking. Some kids thrive at those schools and some parents get completely lost in the game.
Schools in SC are on a County Basis, so a school district may encompass several towns and have several districts like Dorchester 1, Dorchester 2, etc. Charleston School District covers Charleston, Sullivans Island, Isle of Palms, Mount Pleasant, etc. Having said that, there are some overlaps for convenience sake.
The Charleston County schools in Mount Pleasant are rated as some of the best in SC whereas their schools in Charleston are rated much, much lower. Same Same Charleston County School District. Does that tell you something?
Dorchester always likes to compete at the district level. MtP schools, while in Charleston County, are better. If you have younger kids, I would suggest looking at the school paths from elementary through high school. There's no point buying a home that has a great elementary school only to feed into a poor middle school or high school.
Charleston has some of the best charter schools in the country. BUT, don't buy a home with the idea that you'll just get your child into one. Competition is pretty high.
My .02 is that either Summerville or MtP schools would work fine. You lose the chance to get into the Charleston Magnet schools if you choose Summerville. But, you get much more home for the money in Summerville. As with all things in life, it's a balancing act.
The OP has posted in the Charlotte, NC forum not the Charleston, SC forum.
??? This post is in the Charleston forum. And they specifically reference Charleston, SC. Summerville and Mt Pleasant are the two biggest transplant magnates/communities in the Greater Charleston area.
Also forgot to comment on one of the earlier posts- I would be shocked if DD2/Summerville were a top school district in the nation. I cannot imagine them being a top in even the region when you consider the metro Atlanta, Charlotte and Raleigh schools. Also Lexington, Greenville, and York/outer Charlotte suburbs have some well achieving schools. Here are a couple of recent rankings that might help.
I actually caught up with two friends yesterday who are thinking about moving back to Philly because of schools. Now that their kids are 1 and 3 they are starting to give education more thought and said it just isn't measuring up.
??? This post is in the Charleston forum. And they specifically reference Charleston, SC. Summerville and Mt Pleasant are the two biggest transplant magnates/communities in the Greater Charleston area.
Also forgot to comment on one of the earlier posts- I would be shocked if DD2/Summerville were a top school district in the nation. I cannot imagine them being a top in even the region when you consider the metro Atlanta, Charlotte and Raleigh schools. Also Lexington, Greenville, and York/outer Charlotte suburbs have some well achieving schools. Here are a couple of recent rankings that might help.
I actually caught up with two friends yesterday who are thinking about moving back to Philly because of schools. Now that their kids are 1 and 3 they are starting to give education more thought and said it just isn't measuring up.
Lol their kids are 1 and 3, what is it they are trying to measure up to?
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