Where to live to have a large house w/ yard & best elementary schools (Minneapolis: 2013)

[packngo]

Hi -

We may be relocating to the Twin Cities area this summer and I need your help. I have 3 young boys (won't start school until 2013) and a work-from-home husband, and through painful experience we know that to preserve family sanity we need to live in a house with at least 4,000sq ft and a yard. Most importantly though we want to give the boys the best schooling we can. I would be working in downtown Minneapolis and would prefer a commute no longer than ~30mins.

So... where would you recommend? What are the best elementary schools in the area? (Are some better than others within school districts - eg within Minnetonka, Wayzata) We'd prefer to go public, but would it ever make sense to buy a cheaper house further out and then pay to go to private schools? From looking through the forums, I see that a lot of people say Edina schools (& Minnetonka, Wayzata) are great (though I know some of you have also commented on a sense of entitlement there) - but from checking realtor websites it's not obvious we could get a large house there for <$1M... though we'll definitely look.

I have searched through the forums, but many of the references I find relate to high schools - and I'd really appreciate your advice specifically on elementary schools and/or overall school district quality.

Many thanks for your help

[uptown_urbanist]

Private schools aren't generally considered a "necessity" in Minnesota. There are some available, of course, but usually parents choose them because they are the right fit for their children, not because their local options are lacking. Also be aware that open enrollment is an option here (meaning you can send your child to school in a different district if you are willing to transport them), although obviously I wouldn't move somewhere with a local zoned school that you dislike with the assumption that you can just send them elsewhere.

I doubt you'd be able to afford a huge house on a large lot in Edina. There are plenty of other perfectly fine suburbs with good schools and big lots, though. I'd keep an open mind and look for the houses within your commuting range first, and then worry about the schools. Minnetonka or Plymouth might have the large houses on large lots. Golden Valley is a fairly fast commute to DT and has some houses that size for under 600k. Heading the other way, suburbs like Apple Valley might be within commuting range, and have TONS of huge houses for well under one million, with some options under 500k. Schools are fine there, too.

Some of the districts are bigger and therefore have a bigger range of elementary schools within their borders; I think that sometimes leads some posters here to write off entire districts (because not all schools have equally good test scores) but, especially when it comes to the elementary schools, it's the local school that matters most.

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

St. Louis Park has some nicer homes on larger lots in some areas, specifically Minnekhada Vista (awesome n'hood!) near Lake Calhoun, and I'd be willing to bet you could find something decent for under $1M.....not 4K SF though. SLP schools are amongst the best in the metro too, and I don't know how familiar you are with the metro area, but SLP is 5 miles from downtown!

[northsub]

You could look at Mounds View and Centennial districts. They will have highly-rated schools (Mounds View being perhaps the best district in the state), 4,000+ sq ft houses (some on 1/2+ acre lots), and commute times within 30 minutes to downtown Minneapolis.

[golfgal]

I would say that you should be able to find a house and a yard you are looking for anywhere outside of the 494/694 ring. No need to go private, even outside of the general metro area. Eagan, Apple Valley, Rosemount Mahtomedi and Mounds View would be where I would start. Towns like Hastings, Stillwater, Chaska are also considerations but would be a bit farther out but still not a bad commute into Minneapolis. Stillwater would be in the 30 minute range if you are on that side of downtown-more if you have to drive through downtown and deal with the mess of traffic lights. Hastings and Chaska closer to 40 minutes but still not bad drives. You will get more house for your money in Hastings.