Apartments Near Key Schools
"Apartments Near Key Schools" (学区房) is a term that usually refers to those flats located near schools of the highest educational quality.
Nowadays, many families in China are striving to rent or purchase this type of apartment when their children reach school-age, thus causing the prices of those flats to rise sharply.
In May 2013, an apartment in Beijing’s downtown Wudaokou was sold at 100,000 yuan (US$ 16,265) per square meter, a price double that of the average one found in its surroundings. The skyrocketing price was attributed to the flat’s proximity to several outstanding middle schools and universities in the area.
According to the educational policy in Beijing Municipality, students are not required to attend any form of entrance exams over the course of their compulsory education. They can go to schools near their homes. Nevertheless, the educational quality varies considerably from school to school. That’s why parents are willing to spend heavily on a flat nearby the high-quality schools, even on those more rundown ones which are decades old.
According to Baidu.com, the prices of the apartments near key schools in Beijing have gone up about 1,500 yuan per square meter from one month earlier in April 2013.
Some online users commented that the prices of the apartments near key schools can only come down again when the government enhances the equality of schooling for all students across the country.
