Realtor.com adds school search tool to its website

In order to help home buyers find suitable homes for sale near their chosen school, Realtor.com is introducing a new search tool that identifies elementary, middle and high schools in their desired area. House hunters can also just enter the name of a school into a search box and it will take them to a map that pinpoints the school’s location along with nearby homes for sale.

“Searching for homes by school has been the top requested feature by our users, and it showcases the importance of schools on homebuying decisions,” said Chung Meng Cheong, chief product officer for realtor.com, in a statement. “Our new school search feature makes it easy for those who are already familiar with a community to find homes within specific district boundaries. It takes us one step further in our mission to make all things home simple, efficient, and enjoyable.”

Realtor.com cited a recent study that indicates that 22 percent of buyers aged 35 to 44 say being near to a good school is one of their top reasons to move. In addition, a second study by the National Association of Realtors found that almost half of all buyers with kids aged under 18 indicated that the quality of the school district is one of the most important factors when it comes to choosing a suitable neighborhood to buy a home.

Realtor.com has introduced quite a few new tools for home buyers of late, including Matterport 3D virtual tours for select listings, local community pages that cover market trends, commute times and recommended homes, and the inclusion of Yelp reviews on nearby amenities such as shopping and restaurants.