DON’T BREAK BANK
New analysis of Queensland state school performance and home values has revealed that parents may want to look to the regions for an A+ education that won’t break the bank.
News Corp has launched Bang for Buck, a unique data piece that identifies highperforming state schools and the most affordable property markets within school catchments.
Using the latest NAPLAN data, median home values supplied by Proptrack, and school catchment maps, the analysis then applies a weighting of 70/30 to determine a final Bang for Buck ranking for 709 of Queensland’s 1264 government-funded schools.
Schools without a NAPLAN average or a median dwelling catchment price were omitted.
The results may surprise, with the top-scoring schools based on both metrics located in regional Queensland.
Top of the list for primary schools is Mount Tyson State School (SS) in Toowoomba, which has a NAPLAN ranking of 10 and a median house value of $704,600.
By comparison, Queensland’s top-performing primary school for NAPLAN results in 2023 was Sunnybank Hills SS, where the median house price in its catchment is $1.223m – $519,000 more than in Mount Tyson.
Other state primary schools to make the top 10 for both affordability and performance were Hermit Park and Magnetic Island (Townsville), Caravonica (Cairns), Gladstone
Central, Glen Aplin and Applethorpe (Southern Downs) and The Caves (Rockhampton).
In Greater Brisbane, Jamboree Heights came out with the top Bang for Buck score in the capital, with a NAPLAN ranking of 19. But soaring prices meant its median house price pushed past $1m.
Mount Gravatt State High School (SHS) earned the top Bang for Buck score in the capital, with a NAPLAN rank of 9 and a median catchment price of $1,085,600.
It was followed by the hotly sought-after Mansfield SHS, which has a NAPLAN rank of 2 and a median house value of $1.234m, an increase of 54 per cent in three years.
A recent auction event held at Mansfield SHS by Ray White saw more than $14m in property change hands in and around the coveted school catchment, with more than 200 registered bidders.
Ray White Mount Gravatt principal Grant Boman said a good education was a major driver for Aussie families.
“We are very lucky to have some fabulous private and public schools within our area but the jewel in the crown, so to speak, is Mansfield State High School,” he said.
As a result, Mr Boman said, it was no surprise that Mansfield and Wishart had some of the most tightly held homes.
On the Gold Coast, Springbrook SS recorded the top score for affordability and academic results, followed by Varsity College and Bellevue Park SS. Home values in the Springbrook SS catchment were the cheapest of the top 10 at $765,300, with the school’s NAPLAN rank coming in at 89.
For secondary schools, Tam