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The $450K School Rating Trap: How to Stop Overpaying for Demographic Proxies in Greater Boston
Under 1 min read
•December 1, 2025THE BOTTOM LINE
That GreatSchools 10/10 score isn't measuring teaching quality—it's measuring ZIP code wealth. Buyers pay $370K-600K premiums for demographic proxies while missing schools with superior growth metrics at half the price.
WHO NEEDS THIS
Families with school-age kids shopping in the $800K-$1.5M range who filter by ratings.
KEY INSIGHTS
- •GreatSchools ratings reflect student demographics more than teaching effectiveness
- •Student Growth Percentiles reveal actual learning gains—often invisible in rankings
- •Melrose (8.0 rating) delivers comparable outcomes to Lexington (10.0) at 45% lower cost
- •Test score ratings ignore teacher quality, curriculum strength, and college outcomes
- •Smart buyers research MCAS growth data, not just proficiency scores
DO THIS NEXT
Look up your target school's Student Growth Percentile on MA DESE website today.
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