Due to my age and inexperience, I have never faced the challenge of buying a home and selecting the appropriate neighborhood for my children to grow up in. In addition, being new to the Hartford area, I am mostly unfamiliar with the suburbs surrounding Hartford and what sort of education these suburbs have access to. This simulation taught me both how the home buying and mortgage process works as well as what sort of educational experience my children could receive if my family settled in a suburb of Hartford.
At the start of the simulation, I received one of best family profiles (by the grace of Professor Dougherty’s random selection). I quickly learned, with an annual gross income of 54k and savings of 10k, that not only could I easily afford a two or three bedroom house in the suburbs, but I could also afford a home that was highly attractive.
My favorite home, located on 248 Hollister Way West in Glastonbury, CT (1)
My favorite home was located in Glastonbury, CT. Rich red in color, modern in design, with two bathrooms and three bedrooms, the home appeared to be perfect for my two children and me. Also, at $209,900, the house fit perfectly into my budget (according to the home affordability calculator2). When I browsed the education information, conveniently located on the house buying site, I was even more amazed. Most of the schools in the area ranked an 8 or 9 on a scale of 10. By far, the schools in Glastonbury had the highest ranking of any of the other schools I found nearby other houses I was looking at in Berlin, New Britain, and West Hartford, just to name a few.
The schools in the area had an incredibly high ranking, with most at an 8 or 9 out of 10. (3)
Because I had such a big budget, money was barely an issue, and I found I had many homes to choose from and in a variety of locations. I feel, if this simulation where to put on the web, more comparison between homes and schools available in Hartford, versus homes and schools available in the surrounding suburbs, would make the simulation more effective. I barely noticed the effect that money had on the schooling available to my children. However, that was because I had plenty of money to go around. Perhaps, if I had worked with a smaller sum, I would have realized that many suburban homes and suburban schools would have been off-limits to me. I guess you could say, with so much money to spend, it was difficult for me to understand the plight of some of my other classmates who were limited to areas with poorer school systems.
Knowing how the whole system works, however, I realize that money buys more than a home. It buys access to the local schools and buys the surrounding neighborhood. I was just lucky enough to be able to afford schools and a neighborhood that were excellent.
1“248 Hollister Way West Unit: 248.” Realtor.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Sept. 2012. <http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/248-Hollister-Way-W-Unit-248_Glastonbury_CT_06033_M47782-96479>.
2“How Much House Can You Afford?” Affordable Home Calculator from CNNMoney. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Sept. 2012. <http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/houseafford/houseafford.html>.
3“248 Hollister Way West Unit: 248.” Realtor.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Sept. 2012. <http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/248-Hollister-Way-W-Unit-248_Glastonbury_CT_06033_M47782-96479>.