Regretting buying a bigger house in a not so nice area

[Cashmeresocksandpjs]

DH & I weren’t able to afford a house in the town we grew up in so we moved about 20 mins away to a not so nice area but we got a lot more for our money.

We’ve since had a child and now that decisions around schools are looming, I’m starting to massively regret our decision. Every time I walk past the school gates at pick up time, it’s just full of mums in their pajamas puffing away on their vapes and the language I hear from children in the park from this school is shocking ! We spend all our time going back to the town we grew up in for all our toddler classes etc.

I know I sound like an awful snob and I’m going to get flamed for this but i just can’t help but worry for my little one. There’s nothing we can do as we can’t afford to move back so there’s no point to this thread really but I’m just so cross at my past self for choosing the house over area.

This.
Good schools that your children will thrive in is priceless.
I would take a small house over what you describe any day.

We did the opposite, we lived in a tiny flat to get into a desirable school catchment because education is our priority. It was a tough few years but once dc1 was in the school, we moved a bit further out where we could afford a small house, and dc2 will be able to get in on sibling priority. That's a strategy to consider, though it depends how old your dc is now as it would take time to sell and move.

It's still worth applying for the oversubscribed schools, birth rates have dropped so you have a higher chance than in the past, or you could get in on the waiting list.

I don't think your fears are unreasonable although unless you have proof the school in your area has a bad record for bullying or disruption in the classroom I don't see any harm in giving it a chance.

Well, the kind of area where kids are swearing, parents are going to school drop off in pyjamas, and as OP described it, is rough. Then I’m hazarding a guess it’s a deprived area, and therefore is likely to have more crime. The two go hand in hand.

Obviously that doesn’t mean everyone is a criminal, but there’s a big difference living somewhere with high deprivation and crime, versus a nicer neighbourhood with families where parents work and have good education. We can pretend there’s no correlation, but we’d be lying to ourselves.