Allen Markel, REALTOR® · Texas Premier Realty

Schools

Do school ratings affect what homes sell for in Cy-Fair ISD?

Answered by Allen Markel, REALTOR®, Texas Premier Realty ·

Short answer

In our sales data, prices differ by the rating of the zoned elementary campus, but the difference mixes rating with home size and age. Detached homes that closed in the last 12 months in zones of campuses rated A by TEA in 2025 sold at a median $415,000 ($163 per square foot, 2,602 sales); B zones $305,395 ($145, 2,068 sales); and C zones $300,000 ($142, 955 sales). Those homes also differ in size, with medians of 2,665, 2,166 and 2,218 square feet, so this is an association, not a measured effect.

What do the sales show?

We matched 5,625 detached-home sales from September 2025 to August 2026 to the official 2025-2026 elementary zones of Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, using each sale's coordinates, and grouped them by the 2025 TEA rating of the zoned campus. Zones of 23 A-rated campuses had 2,602 sales, median $415,000 and $163 a square foot. Zones of 24 B-rated campuses had 2,068 sales, $305,395 and $145. Zones of 10 C-rated campuses had 955 sales, $300,000 and $142. Every group is far above our minimum-sample rule of 30 sales. The gap between A and B in price per square foot is about 12%, and between B and C about 2.5%. A note on the join: 57 elementary zones matched all 5,625 sales, and the rating is TEA's final 2025 rating for the campus. We restricted to detached homes to reduce the effect of condominiums, and to sales with at least 500 square feet of living area. The 2026 preliminary ratings were not used.

How should this be read?

Read it as description, not cause. The A-rated zones' homes are larger (2,665 square feet at the median against 2,166 and 2,218) and, in many cases, newer and in master-planned sections, and price per square foot depends on size, age, lot and location as well as on the campus. Ratings also change year to year, and buyers weigh many factors. We report prices only, not characteristics of any place or its people, and we do not suggest that any zone is better or worse. For a specific home, comparable sales of similar homes nearby are the reliable guide. If you want a like-for-like comparison, use homes of similar size and age within a single subdivision that straddles a zone line, which our data can show for a specific address on request. Any such comparison should be about the prices of homes, and it describes prices only.

Detached-home sales by TEA 2025 rating of the zoned elementary campus (Sep 2025 - Aug 2026)
Zoned campus ratingCampusesSalesMedian priceMedian $/sq ftMedian sq ft
A232,602$415,000$1632,665
B242,068$305,395$1452,166
C10955$300,000$1422,218
Sources: listings_sold (Residential, Detached, Closed 2025-09-01 to 2026-08-31) joined by point-in-polygon to school_attendance_zones_effective (Cy-Fair elementary) and school_tea_ratings 2025; groups under 30 sales would be suppressed; queried 2026-09-25. (data as of September 25, 2026)

Common follow-up questions

Do higher-rated school zones have higher home prices in Cy-Fair ISD?

In our sales data, yes: medians of $415,000, $305,395 and $300,000 for A, B and C zones, with differences in home size.

Is this proof that ratings raise prices?

No. It is an association; size, age and location also differ.

How many sales are behind the numbers?

5,625 detached-home sales over 12 months.

Sources

Talk it through with Allen

A short call can turn a general answer into one for your address, your timeline and your numbers.

Call (832) 709-2540

Related questions

Answers describe transactions and public data. They are not legal, tax or financial advice.