School situation in NYC is quite complicated. Several things to consider: 1. Private schools cost around $30k a year. However, this price deferential vis-à-vis

School situation in NYC is quite complicated. Several things to consider: 1. Private schools cost around $30k a year. However, this price deferential vis-à-vis free public schools is built into property prices so that you are not really "saving" $30k if you live in a magnet school district. This is further complicated by... 2. The vast divide between have's and have-not's and the socialist city rules that attempt to mitigate this divide by sending poor kids to magnet schools. This means that even if you are paying through the nose to live in a good neighborhood (via taxes, or property prices, or rent prices), it is not a guarantee that your kids will go to the magnet school. In fact, the only way to get in is to place your child on the waiting lists within the first months of their life. Even if you are in luck and your kids do get slotted into a good school... 3. These schools are dominated by jaded, entitled urban sophisticates mixed with super intense, tunnel-vision type A's. At least half are on daily pharmaceuticals to help them juggle extremely ambitious workloads and/or social calendars. IMHO, New York is great for single guys and problematic for everyone else. Once we had a baby, we've made the decision to move, even though financially we could have made it work. The trade offs are just not worth it. Lastly, if you are pricing properties, don't forget to look at monthly expenses. It's common to pay around $1,500 per month in condo/coop fees on top of your mortgage, and that's for a 1-bedroom.