Frisco House with Little Elm Magnet school or Frisco ISD (Plano: real estate, new home)

[SGeorge7]

My husband and I are planning to buy a home in Frisco. We are stumped between two builders (both in Frisco).
The first home has the floor plan we fell in love with. It is also has a bit more appealing price. However, it is Little Elm school district. My kids who are not of school age yet, would be guranteed access to the new Little Elm Stem Academy (a magnet school for K through 8th grade).
The second home is more expensive, smaller in lot size but Frisco ISD. We also like the feel of the community. We see families strolling outside and interacting with one another.
I think we would go with the first home, but our concern is where our kids would go after eight grade. We have been advised by friends to pick the Frisco ISD home, but we love the other home.
Anyone know why everyone seems to advise against Little Elm ISD even with the addition of the Stem Academy?

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by SGeorge7

My husband and I are planning to buy a home in Frisco. We are stumped between two builders (both in Frisco).
The first home has the floor plan we fell in love with. It is also has a bit more appealing price. However, it is Little Elm school district. My kids who are not of school age yet, would be guranteed access to the new Little Elm Stem Academy (a magnet school for K through 8th grade).
The second home is more expensive, smaller in lot size but Frisco ISD. We also like the feel of the community. We see families strolling outside and interacting with one another.
I think we would go with the first home, but our concern is where our kids would go after eight grade. We have been advised by friends to pick the Frisco ISD home, but we love the other home.
Anyone know why everyone seems to advise against Little Elm ISD even with the addition of the Stem Academy?

Probably because the Stem Academy (which I have never heard of until your post) is new and unproven. With Frisco schools, you get a known entity in a top 1/3 public district for DFW. Little Elm ISD, overall, is nowhere near Frisco's academic caliber, much less the elite publics like Plano, Coppell, HP, etc.

[SilverGold]

Let's use the philosophy that Frisco supporters use, some diffrence between schools doesn't matter. A smart kid with supportive family would do good anywhere. New school districts improve with time. If Little Elm adds another 10 minutes to an already 50 minute commute then so be it, that's a price one must pay for a new home with latest shade of granite and media room. Frisco is getting older and crowded, Little Elm is the next "IT" suburb.

[frenzyrider]

Originally Posted by SilverGold

Let's use the philosophy that Frisco supporters use, some diffrence between schools doesn't matter. A smart kid with supportive family would do good anywhere. New school districts improve with time. If Little Elm adds another 10 minutes to an already 50 minute commute then so be it, that's a price one must pay for a new home with latest shade of granite and media room. Frisco is getting older and crowded, Little Elm is the next "IT" suburb.

U must be GripeWater? TC80 post was helpful, yours not so much... Just like GW reputation...

To the OP, if your choice is between frisco ISD and Little Elm ISD, I think the former is a better choice. TC80's post was right on the mark.
Good luck!

[SilverGold]

Call me gripe water, soda pop, merlot or whatever but what's good for the goose, is good for the gander. Why can't we apply same logic on Little Elm? A K-8 STEM school sounds wonderful. Little Elm's real estate is picking up momentum. By the time OP's kids are done with middle school, probably they'll have a STEM highschool to accommodate people migrating from Frisco.

[CMC_TX]

Originally Posted by frenzyrider

U must be GripeWater? TC80 post was helpful, yours not so much... Just like GW reputation...

To the OP, if your choice is between frisco ISD and Little Elm ISD, I think the former is a better choice. TC80's post was right on the mark.
Good luck!

I agree. Latest incarnation of NG00, GripeWater, whatever other names this user has. All the posts are the same, and suddenly there are no new posts under the previous name. Why not just stick to one S/N?

Poster needs to go work for the Plano Chamber of Commerce since there is apparently nothing nice outside Plano, particularly west plano.

[ekta82]

Life does not begin and end with sending your kids to Plano West schools. Each family has different priorities and financial issues to take care of. Please give genuine advice/suggestions. GripeWater NG00 SilverGold.

[stephwin]

I live right on the LE/Frisco border and I have never heard of the STEM school. I wouldn't want to take a risk and hope that it is a good program. And, like you said, what happens after 8th grade? Even if the STEM school is great, you may be in for a rude awakening when your kid gets into HS if it is drastically sub-par.

[mom2gurls]

Where is the IP address ban?

LOL

In all seriousness though, it really is difficult because when you move here you think you have done all the research, and once you get here its a whole different story-sometimes. Also to make matters more confusing, if you are looking at new construction...and go to visit or look at the site plan...there are deposits and solds marked on many of the lots. It doesn't matter what city....its sold or deposited.

The best thing to do is rent, maybe talk to some neighbors if you can that have bought there...you know your family and what is good for your decision. Visit the school as well.

[Txgolf75]

Originally Posted by stephwin

I live right on the LE/Frisco border and I have never heard of the STEM school. I wouldn't want to take a risk and hope that it is a good program. And, like you said, what happens after 8th grade? Even if the STEM school is great, you may be in for a rude awakening when your kid gets into HS if it is drastically sub-par.

There has been a lot of buzz about this program, and I'll buy into it. Again, all of Frisco's ISD fans are basing their opinions off of past data and public perception. All supporters of the STEM are hopeful for future results.

In above quote, if you take the 90k-100k in savings off your home price and put it in a conservative fund...by the time the kid reaches 9th grade, and if you still believe little elm ISD is reason your child is not where they need to be or that the high school available is not right for your kid, you can send them to private school with your savings. Or pay for first two years of college.

We live in The Tribute and have seen a ton of growth over last year. Darling just bought quite a bit of lots and the marina and beach area is in planning. The school is coming along and prices in new construction have risen 7 times in last 14 months.