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As schools strive to attract more diverse students, your website is a prime opportunity to set the tone and stand apart. Building an accessible and inclusive website helps ensure all users (the people who spend time on your site) feel welcome and valued.

Here are some key considerations and best practices:

1. Follow accessible design best practices.

Apply these best practices to ensure you’re considering the needs of all website visitors, not just the majority. The beauty of accessible design is that it benefits everyone — not just those who need it.

Make text large and clear enough to read, and use colors that are easy on the eyes.
Offer more than one way to experience the content on your website, such as including videos with captions.
Provide easy ways to adjust preferences, such as changing the language in which text is displayed.
Make it simple to suggest new ideas and technologies, such as including a way to contact your school via the menu or at the bottom of your site.

Tip: Add alt text to meaningful images. Alternative text, commonly referred to as alt text, is a textual description of an image appearing within a web page. This text is part of the page’s HTML code and is included as an alt attribute, which is a special tag that tells the browser what to display if the image cannot be loaded.

2. Design with inclusivity in mind.

While accessibility is about helping everyone use a site effectively, inclusivity is about helping everyone feel welcome. Consider these tips to make your site more inclusive.

Keep your language simple, informal, and industry jargon-free to ensure everyone can understand and engage with your content.
Use action-oriented language on buttons and links to guide people through your website.
Provide positive reinforcement.
Offer interactive elements that give users positive feedback and acknowledgment, such as confirmation messages after completing forms or applications. This fosters a sense of engagement and reassurance.

3. Utilize accessibility tools for testing.

Several free and helpful tools can check for a variety of accessibility issues on your website, including:

• WAVE Accessibility Evaluation Tool

• Siteimprove Accessibility Checker Chrome extension

• axe DevTools

Automated tools may not catch every error, so supplement them with hands-on testing methods, such as reading through content with accessibility in mind, checking that all interactive elements can be operated with a keyboard, and testing the site with a screen reader.

By incorporating these accessible and inclusive design principles into your website, you can create a welcoming and accommodating online environment for parents, students, teachers, and staff. This reflects positively on your school’s commitment to diversity and inclusion and ensures that everyone can access information and resources to meet their needs.

About the Author

Shaina Rozen is a content strategist, writer, and founder of Sidetone. When businesses struggle to stand out from the competition and explain what they do in words their customers understand, Shaina is there to help. As a content strategist and writer, she collaborates with companies to translate complex information into clear communication, show their brand’s unique value, and inspire their audience to act.

More Website Resources

Your website is the digital front door of your school. Take a look at the resources below for more ways to make yours stand out.

Are you renovating or expanding your school facility? Whether you’re looking to add a gymnasium, basketball court, library, science laboratory, or need additional classrooms to accommodate growing enrollment, the construction process presents an opportunity to further your school’s mission and enrich the educational experience for your students.

Here’s how to set your project up for success from the get-go.

1. Establish Clear Goals by Setting the Budget and Target Delivery Date

At the heart of every successful construction project lies a clear set of goals, including a well-defined budget and a target timeline for delivery of the new space. By setting realistic expectations and working towards them collaboratively, project stakeholders can align their efforts and minimize the risk of costly delays or overruns.

2. Build a Strong Team

Assembling a strong and cohesive project team is key. The architect plays a pivotal role in leading the design process and orchestrating the efforts of other key stakeholders, such as engineers, consultants, and contractors. Additionally, having an experienced owner’s representative onboard can provide valuable guidance and oversight throughout the project. Selecting the most qualified and experienced architect and contractor for your project is crucial for success.

3. Conduct a Competitive Bidding Process

Don’t go with the first bid you receive! Project owners can make informed decisions and secure the best possible partners for their endeavors by conducting a Request for Proposal (RFP) process for the architect, owner’s representative, and contractor. It’s best practice to have at least 3 to 4 firms to compare against.

4. Navigate the Entitlements and Permitting Process

Be proactive in identifying and addressing regulatory requirements early in the process. From zoning approvals to building permits, thorough due diligence is key to staying on track and within budget. You’ll avoid the potential of costly setbacks. Seek guidance from an experienced architect, land use attorney, owner’s representative, or permit expeditor to help your team identify all the potential entitlements and permits you’ll need to secure before you can start construction on your project.

Embarking on a construction project to enhance your school’s facilities is more than just a physical endeavor – it’s about creating spaces that align with your institution’s mission and support its educational goals. With the right approach and adherence to best practices, a school building can become a powerful tool in advancing the mission and vision of your school.

About the Author

Michael Soh helps schools expand and improve their facilities. Along with a degree from USC in Civil Engineering, Michael has nearly a decade of experience—having managed projects in New York City, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. He has expertise in mixed-use, multifamily, office, and commercial projects, allowing him to support schools through ground-up construction, building and space improvements, and redevelopment initiatives.

Delve into the essential aspects of school building management in this webinar, 5 Key Aspects of Managing Your School Building. The panel of experts covered a spectrum of topics crucial for school leaders managing their buildings, including best practices and considerations for building improvement, renovation, and management.

You can watch the webinar on-demand anytime here. Here’s a recap of what was covered.

Construction Best Practices

Expert Michael Soh shared best practices for ensuring your construction project stays on track and within budget. Here are a few of his recommendations:

Plan and design with precision
Assemble a strong team
Implement competitive bidding
Engage experienced consultants

How to Make the Most of Your Lease

Next, we heard from Tabatha Martins and Mary Dillon on how schools can make the most of lease agreements.

They discussed understanding your lease terms, rent details, property conditions, and tenant rights. This is crucial for negotiating favorable terms and fostering clear communication with landlords.

Facility Financing Options

Tommy Alberini shared financing options for school facilities, discussing factors like eventual ownership, lease terms, buyout and refinancing options, and payment structures to strike a balance between flexibility and stability.

How to Work with a Broker

Next, Maddy Marlton shared the benefits of working with a broker. She emphasized how partnering with a commercial real estate broker offers access to market insights, listings, negotiation expertise, and regulatory guidance, streamlining the process and enhancing the likelihood of securing an ideal facility.

Real-World Experiences

Lastly, we heard from Christin Barkas and Ryan Eldridge, who shared real-world experiences of schools accomplishing their mission through strategic building upgrades.

Partner for Support

If you’re embarking on a building upgrade or building purchase, we’re here to help. Get in touch with our team and browse additional free resources below.

Tuesday Tips: Using a Broker to Find Your School’s Forever Home

In this Tuesday Tips, Maddy Marlton and Graham Taylor discussed the advantages of working with a broker when searching for a school facility, emphasizing three main benefits: time-saving expertise, comprehensive market coverage, and tailored solutions to meet unique school requirements. Watch the conversation for more on how brokers streamline the process, handle negotiations, and guide […]

Timing to Buy Your School

Buying, building, or upgrading your school’s facility isn’t a single decision — it’s five different paths, each with its own timeline. Staying in your current space with a modified lease can take as little as 6–7 months. Building new construction from scratch averages 13 or more months. Getting the timeline right, before you commit to […]

The quest to find the ideal home for your school can be complex—and feel daunting. This is why it can make a huge difference to have a broker to guide you through the process. Here are just three key benefits of working with a broker that can make all the difference when seeking your school’s forever home.

1. You will save time and energy.

With their deep understanding of the industry, brokers can efficiently lead your school through the intricate processes surrounding property transactions—whether it’s buying, selling, or leasing a facility. Brokers have the knowledge and resources to streamline the process, allowing you to focus on running your school.

2. You’ll benefit from their network.

Brokers can offer your school access to a vast network and comprehensive market coverage, ensuring that no stone is left unturned in the search for the perfect facility. They can explore all available property options, including off-market opportunities that schools wouldn’t typically have access to. By leveraging their connections and expertise, brokers can present you with a wide range of choices tailored to your specific needs and preferences.

3. You’ll stay on mission and on budget.

Brokers closely collaborate with your school to gain a deep understanding of their goals and priorities; brokers can align property searches accordingly. Whether it’s location, size, amenities, or budget constraints, brokers work to find properties that perfectly match your school’s criteria.

In addition to these three key advantages, it’s important to engage with a broker early in the process. By starting the conversation well in advance, preferably 12 to 18 months before seeking occupancy, you can better manage expectations and streamline your search for an ideal facility.

With their time-saving expertise, comprehensive market coverage, and ability to provide tailored solutions, brokers serve as invaluable allies, offering guidance and support every step of the way.

About the Author

Maddy Marlton has a strong background in industrial real estate, including property management, leasing, acquisitions, and development. As an integral member of Grow Schools’s Operations team, Maddy establishes relationships with brokers that can help get schools into their forever homes.

Your website serves as the digital front door to your school. A user-friendly design creates a positive first impression, making it more likely that visitors will explore further and consider enrollment. It ensures that prospective families, who may or may not be tech-savvy, can easily navigate the site, find information, and complete enrollment processes without frustration.

Here are 5 tips for a user-friendly website.

1. Understand Your Audience

One of the foundational steps in creating a meaningful digital experience is gaining a deep understanding of your audience. Identify the different user groups, whether they are potential families, current students, or community supporters, and conduct interviews, surveys, and empathy mapping exercises to comprehend their needs, motivations, and experiences. By putting yourself in the shoes of your users, you can tailor your website to resonate with them on a personal level.

2. Goal Setting: Define Success Metrics from the Start

Set clear goals for your website. Establish SMART goals—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, rather than a broad goal like increasing enrollment, aim to increase the number of applications submitted through the website by a specific percentage within a defined timeframe. Setting goals ensures alignment among stakeholders and provides benchmarks for measuring success.

3. Monitor Your Progress Effectively

Implement analytics and tracking tools to monitor user behavior on your website. Track metrics that align with your goals, but be cautious of potential misleading indicators. High traffic numbers may not always translate to genuine user engagement. Combine quantitative data with qualitative insights gathered through interviews and feedback to gain a comprehensive understanding of user interactions.

4. Balance Statistics with Storytelling: Humanize Your Data

While statistics and awards add credibility, experts stressed that it’s crucial to balance them with compelling storytelling. Share success stories, testimonials, and impactful narratives that humanize the data. Use multimedia elements, such as videos and photos, to create an emotional connection with your audience. A well-crafted narrative not only informs but also engages and resonates with visitors.

5. Create an Inclusive Experience

As charter schools strive to attract more diverse students, a school’s website is a prime opportunity to set the tone and stand out.

School websites—and all websites—should consider all types of users, not just the majority. They must be accessible (able to be used by people of all abilities) and inclusive (not exclusionary in their form or content).

Niki Blaker is a design strategist and founder of Five Sigma Studio—a design firm focused on bringing brand strategy, user experience, design, and content together. Her work is guided by an emphasis on cross-discipline collaboration and in-depth research that makes meaningful brand strategy and design experiences possible.

According to the National School Choice Awareness Foundation’s most recent survey, 75 percent of U.S. parents, about 46 million families, considered, searched for, or enrolled a child in a different school in 2025, and 62 percent expect to search again this year (National School Choice Awareness Foundation). Most of that search starts online, so your school’s website and online presence carry real weight. Here are five ways to show up and make a strong impression once families and caregivers find you.

How Do You Improve Search Visibility for Your School?

Google still handles the bulk of that search traffic, so paid search through Google Ads remains a solid way to reach families actively looking. Build ad content around the terms people search, like “schools near me,” “schools with enrichment programs,” or “top schools in [your city],” and Google’s free analytics will show you which terms convert so you can adjust your spend. Schools set their own budget and pay only when someone clicks, which keeps it low-risk to test.

But search has changed since keyword ads were the whole story. AI Overviews now show up on more than 20 percent of Google searches, and when they do, click-through to any website drops by nearly 60 percent, according to Similarweb clickstream data reported by Search Engine Land. ChatGPT alone reaches 900 million weekly users, and Google’s own AI Overviews reach 2.5 billion people a month, per CXL. A growing share of families never click a link at all; they get their answer straight from an AI Overview or a chatbot.

Answer engine optimization (AEO) and generative engine optimization (GEO) are about writing content so an AI system can lift a clear, direct answer and cite your school as the source when it responds to a family’s question directly, inside ChatGPT, an AI Overview, or a voice assistant. In practice, that means answering the exact questions families ask, in plain language, near the top of the page: What’s tuition? What’s the student-to-teacher ratio? When does enrollment open? The clearer and more specific your answer, the more likely an AI Overview or chatbot quotes it back with your school’s name attached.

How Do You Design a Website That Works for Families?

Your website is often a family’s first real look at your school, so keep the branding consistent and use authentic photos instead of generic stock images. Design it for two audiences at once, current families and prospective ones, and put enrollment information where nobody has to hunt for it: in the main navigation and as a button on your homepage. A pop-up as deadlines approach helps too.

Build your content around the questions prospective families have. Videos, photos, and testimonials from students, teachers, and families and caregivers show what your school is like day to day, and footage shot by students and teachers often reads as more genuine than a polished production. Keep your calendar, visit days, and enrollment deadlines current, and list school events that are open to the public.

Grow Schools’ free webinar, Click to Enroll: Redesign Your School’s Website for Growth, covers this in more depth if you want to rework your site.

Which Social Platforms Are Worth Your Time?

You don’t need a presence everywhere. Ask current families where they spend time online, and build your strategy around those one or two platforms instead of spreading yourself across all of them. What works on Facebook won’t necessarily work on Instagram or TikTok, so look at what other schools are posting on each platform before you commit.

Running several accounts is a lot for one person, so bring others in. A school representative approves everything before it posts, but families and caregivers, teachers, and students can supply the stories and footage. A student-run media club, with a faculty advisor keeping an eye on it, can handle a surprising amount of the day-to-day content.

How Do You Keep Your School’s Online Listings Accurate?

Sites like GreatSchools, Niche, Private School Review, and Public School Review are often a family’s first stop, and they’re increasingly a source AI Overviews and chatbots pull from directly when someone asks about schools in your area. Give someone on your team access to update enrollment numbers, course offerings, and demographics on each one, and correct errors as soon as you spot them.

These sites vet every review, so staff can’t post one on a family’s behalf, current families and students can. A little school swag as a thank-you goes a long way toward getting people to write one.

Not every review will be glowing, and a negative one will sit there for a while. Treat it the way you’d treat a phone complaint: ignoring it is the online version of hanging up, except everyone else is watching. Respond promptly, address what’s real in the complaint, and use it to show families how your school handles a problem. Updates to these profiles are moderated, so give it 2 to 3 business days to show up after you submit a change.

How Do You Showcase What’s Happening at Your School?

Blog posts are a straightforward way to show your community what your students are doing, and sharing them on LinkedIn and other social channels extends their reach past your own site. Clear, specific posts that answer a real question with real numbers are also more likely to get picked up by an AI Overview or chatbot, which is one more reason to write them well.

Your teachers have plenty worth sharing too. Beyond a guest post on your own site, outlets like Edutopia, The Educators Room, and We Are Teachers accept articles from teachers directly, and member publications of Parent Media often run how-to pieces written by educators. When someone on staff gets published, share it widely and give them credit.

A few ideas beyond blog posts: a teacher-led webinar on classroom management, a counselor’s video on helping students get organized, an administrator speaking on a topic like managing budget cuts, or a student walking through a class project on TikTok.

The more places your school shows up, online and in person, the easier it is for the families already searching to find you.

Whether your school is new to fundraising or simply busy navigating the school year, you may think you are out of time to conduct a year-end campaign. Don’t skip this great opportunity to boost your bottom line! Approximately 30% of all annual giving occurs in December, and around 10% occurs in the last three days. It’s not too late to launch a year-end campaign. Here are five tips to help you maximize your results.

1. Cast A Wide Net

Your fundraising efforts shouldn’t stop at currently enrolled families. Consider inviting your broader community to support your school – including local businesses, grandparents, alumni, and community leaders. Ask your staff, volunteers, and school leadership to share campaign news with their contacts by emailing your appeal letter, forwarding school newsletters, and liking social media posts – you may be surprised at who steps up with a gift!

2. Set A Deadline

Gifts to public charter schools are typically tax-deductible as long as no goods or services are exchanged. Year-end fundraising appeals generally set a deadline of December 31 (or sooner!) to maximize donors’ tax deductions during the calendar year. Set a deadline for your campaign, and be sure to let your families know by what date they need to make their gift. It adds some urgency to the campaign, and they’ll respond in a timely way.

3. Keep It Simple

Busy parents have so many messages coming at them via email, snail mail, and social media. When writing your appeal letter, be sure to keep it streamlined and simple. A one-page mailed or emailed letter should include recent highlights and a clear request for support. Don’t overwhelm your readers with too many statistics or stories – a few well-chosen anecdotes will go a long way in reminding your parents why they love your school and why they should support it with a gift.

4. Ask For What You Need

Do you need help finishing your playground? New microscopes for your science classroom? School supplies for families in need? Or simply general support to make your school stand out as an excellent center for learning? Don’t make your families guess what your needs are – clearly outline what their gift will support and the impact that it will make on your students.

5. Don’t Forget to Say Thank You

Once your campaign ends, reach out to your donors with a personalized letter to say thank you. It’s a great way to let them know they are valued and appreciated members of your school community. Include your school’s IRS tax identification number and the amount and date of their gift to help them at tax-filing time. And don’t forget to report on the outcome of your campaign on school social media and your website. Your donors – and you – should be proud of the results!

Additional Resources

K-12 Fundraising Tips:
https://www.blackbaud.com/industry-insights/resources/k-12-schools/the-k-12-fundraiser-accelerate-your-back-to-school

Easy School Fundraising Ideas:
https://www.weareteachers.com/fundraising-ideas-for-schools/

Fundraising Letter Writing Tips:
https://doublethedonation.com/fundraising-letters/

School Fundraising Event Ideas:
https://www.signupgenius.com/School/school-fundraising-ideas.cfm

Need fundraising help?

Looking for ways to grow your fundraising efforts? Grow Schools partners with our clients to help them meet their contributed revenue goals and plan for the future. Our fundraising team brings a deep knowledge of designing, launching, and growing fundraising campaigns for schools of all sizes. Interested in learning more? Contact us today and see how Grow Schools can help maximize your fundraising efforts!

About the Author

Mara Winke, CFRE, has over 20 years of experience as a professional fundraising consultant for charter, public and international schools. Mara helps her clients maximize their contributed revenue through campaign strategy and analysis, annual and capital campaigns, grant research and writing, and Board and volunteer training. She enjoys running and reading Scandinavian mysteries and is an avid hockey mom.

Effective enrollment marketing is an investment in the long term. It’s comparable to planting a tree; the effort and care you invest early on can result in a thriving canopy of students for years to come. By focusing on strategies that span multiple enrollment seasons, schools can establish a foundation that builds a strong and sustainable school community.

Adopt a strategic marketing tailored to your unique offerings. Enrollment marketing isn’t just about spreading awareness; it’s about communicating why your school is the ideal choice for students and their families. You’ll need to go beyond word of mouth.

Here are some tips for developing a long-term enrollment strategy that helps your school achieve its mission.

Focus on retention.

Focus on both attracting new students and retaining existing ones to create a balanced, long-term enrollment marketing strategy.

Adapt to challenges.

Be sure to stay updated with enrollment trends in the ever-changing educational landscape. Pay special attention to difficulties in regaining enrollment at specific grade levels, such as the third grade, indicating the long-term impact of the pandemic on student retention.

Be thoughtful about your online presence.

Use video content as a dynamic tool for engagement on platforms like TikTok and YouTube to create awareness and interest. For new schools, community engagement and early advocacy are pivotal to building interest and a solid foundation. Ensure your school’s website is compelling, informative, and sparks curiosity among prospective students and their families.

Build a strong Board.

Carefully consider board governance and the composition of your board of directors, especially during the formative stages of a charter school. Having community influencers and parents with significant influence on the board can be a powerful catalyst in promoting your school and fostering community engagement.

Dive Deeper: Watch the Discussion

Ashley McQuarrie and Tony Solorzano joined Michael Barber to discuss these strategies in more depth and touch on social media as a tool for raising awareness. Watch the full video below.

Note: YouTube had an issue with sound for the first five minutes. The speakers were able to recap what they covered once sound was restored.

Reach Your Goals with Digital Marketing

Achieve your enrollment goals through digital marketing. Raise awareness, fundraise, meet enrollment targets, and create a diverse network of champions that will nurture your school over the long term. Check out this free resource here.

Somehow, it’s October already. With all the back-to-school activities, September went by so quickly, and now it feels like the holiday season and a brand new year are just around the corner. And that means new opportunities and, of course, new challenges when it comes to attracting families to your school.

My advice? Don’t wait. The earlier you kickstart your enrollment efforts, the more time you have to connect with families and build those fantastic partnerships. Whether you’re teaming up with external partners or managing things in-house, early planning can make all the difference.

This week, I spoke on YouTube Live about what school leaders can be thinking about right now in terms of enrollment. You can watch that chat below and read on for your tips for October.

Local Engagement and Open Houses

First things first—think local! Engaging with your community is a powerful way to connect with prospective families. Consider hosting open houses, whether in-person or virtual, that give folks a sneak peek into your school’s world. Let them experience your unique educational approach and soak in your school’s warm and welcoming vibe. Your local newspapers can also spread the word about your open houses, and having informative materials ready to go can make sure folks really get what your school is all about.

Community Partnerships

Collaborating with community organizations can be a game-changer. Good options are the Boys and Girls Clubs or YMCA—these organizations have some great networks that can help you reach families you might have missed otherwise. Check out local community-based organizations, too. They’re often hidden gems when it comes to expanding your reach.

Use Video

Videos are your secret sauce, allowing you to authentically showcase your school. You don’t need to be a professional videographer to make videos—simple, genuine, and heartfelt clips can resonate deeply with potential families.

Capture those special moments in your school’s calendar—especially the first day of school—and create video montages that tell your school’s story.

Word of Mouth

Remember, we’re here to support you every step of the way. You can learn more about enrollment marketing partnerships here.

Last but not least, think about word of mouth. Positive recommendations from your current school community can carry a lot of weight. Encourage people to share their stories, and consider hosting events where families can invite friends and family to get to know your school better.

Remember, we’re here to support you every step of the way. You can learn more about enrollment marketing partnerships here.

Tony Solorzano is passionate about helping charter schools thrive in their communities and achieve their enrollment goals. Learn more about Tony here.

Why Buy Your School Building

Buying gives your school three things a lease can’t:

Stability. Ownership makes your school a permanent fixture in your community, rather than a tenant subject to a landlord’s plans.
A financial asset. Building ownership builds equity over time instead of paying down someone else’s mortgage.
Autonomy. You control your own improvements and expansion timeline, instead of negotiating every change with a landlord.

The challenge most charter leaders run into isn’t wanting to buy — it’s the same one every school faces: needing more space while working within real budget constraints.

Today’s School Buying Landscape

The market conditions shaping charter school facility decisions have shifted since this was last updated, and they’re worth knowing before you set a timeline:

Construction costs are still climbing. Construction inputs are running roughly 40% higher than early 2020 levels, with costs still increasing another 5% or so year-over-year.¹
Tariffs are a real line item now. Steel, aluminum, and imported metal furniture — all common in school construction — currently face tariffs as high as 50%, which shows up directly in a construction budget.¹
Skilled labor is tight. Roughly 61% of U.S. metro markets are currently supply-constrained for construction labor, a number expected to keep climbing.¹ That means less flexibility in your contractor’s schedule, so build in buffer time.
Borrowing costs have room to plan around. Commercial real estate loan rates currently range roughly 5%–12.5% depending on the loan type and your school’s financial profile, after the Federal Reserve cut rates through the second half of 2025 and held steady into 2026.² A specific rate quote depends on your school’s financials — but it’s a very different environment than it was even two years ago, and worth revisiting if you last checked rates a while back.

Given these conditions, charter school leaders benefit from a strategic, not reactive, approach to facilities.

Strategic Approaches to Your Facility Decision

There are three broad paths: stay in your current space, buy your own building, or take on new construction. A few ways to make any of them work harder for your budget:

Phase the work. Phased construction or renovation lets you manage cash flow instead of financing everything at once.
Right-size your space. Define the space your mission actually requires before you go looking — it’s easy to overbuild.
Look at what you already have. Renting out unused space, or repurposing an underused wing, can generate funds toward your next project.
Watch the market and move when it aligns. Conditions shift; the school that’s ready to act when a good opportunity appears has an advantage over one that’s just starting to plan.

Three Financial Benchmarks Worth Tracking

Average Daily Attendance (ADA): Aim to fill at least 80% of your facility’s capacity based on ADA, so you’re not paying for space you don’t need.
Rent-to-Revenue Ratio: Keep revenue at least 5–6 times your lease costs for financial stability.
Coverage Ratio: Keep net income at least 120% of your lease costs to protect your school’s financial health.

How Far in Advance to Plan: Timeline by Scenario

How early you need to start depends entirely on which path you’re on. Based on Grow Schools’s underwriting experience across charter school facility transactions,³ here’s what each path typically takes from first conversation to move-in day:

Building new construction — average process 13+ months

Timing	Milestone
Month 1	Scope & confirm need
Months 2–3	Find building & size improvements
Month 4	Propose solution & execute LOI
Month 5	Execute PSA/lease
Months 6–7	Close on transaction
Month 8	Complete prep
Months 9–12	Build
Month 13	Move in

Moving to a forever home with improvements — average process 9–11 months

Timing	Milestone
Month 1	Scope & confirm need
Month 2	Propose solution & execute LOI
Month 3	Execute PSA/lease
Months 4–5	Close on transaction
Month 6	Complete prep
Months 7–10	Build
Month 11	Move in

Moving to a forever home without improvements — average process 9–11 months

Timing	Milestone
Month 1	Scope & confirm need
Month 2	Execute LOI
Month 3	Execute PSA/lease
Months 4–5	Close on transaction
Months 6–9	Build
Month 10	Move in

Staying in your current space with a modified lease — average process 6–7 months

Timing	Milestone
Month 1	Scope & confirm need
Month 2	Execute LOI
Month 3	Execute PSA/lease
Months 4–5	Close on transaction
Month 6	Move in

Staying in your current space with your lease as-is — average process 6–7 months

Timing	Milestone
Month 1	Scope & confirm need
Month 2	Execute LOI
Month 3	Execute PSA/lease
Months 4–5	Close on transaction
Month 6	Move in

The pattern across every path: the first month (scoping and confirming need) and the final stretch (closing and moving in) are non-negotiable minimums. The variable is what happens in between — and that’s exactly where a phased approach or a clear space plan can shorten your timeline.

Building Your Facility Plan Early

Whichever path you choose, starting early gives you room for the delays every facility project runs into. A few habits that help:

Run an annual building audit. Know your facility’s condition and whether it can meet your needs before you’re forced to react to a problem.
Plan for costs beyond the purchase price. Future maintenance, energy efficiency, and your school’s growth trajectory all affect the real cost of a facility decision.
Review your lease and contracts now, not later. Know your lease expiration date and confirm compliance with regulations like Prop 39 well before you need to act on them.

Make an Ideal Space Plan

If buying is the right move, build a space plan around your mission and growth goals, not just your current headcount:

What spaces does your mission actually require?
How many classrooms do you need — today and in five years?
How many bathrooms, and how much hallway and office space?

How Grow Schools Can Help

Money to Buy Your School is Grow Schools’s facility financing solution for charter schools. We buy your building and lease it back to you, often at reduced monthly rent, with a clear path to ownership — and you can close on a property in as few as 90 days. See how the timing played out for DuBois Integrity Academy, which used a Grow Schools partnership to buy their building, then expand into additional buildings as they grew from 578 to more than 1,300 students.

Keep Learning

The Charter School Facilities Financing Guide — the school building marketplace, the planning process, and the four ways charter schools typically finance a facility.
How to Find a Facility Space for Your Charter School — for schools earlier in the process, still deciding whether to lease, renovate, or buy.
Tuesday Tips: Construction Timelines for Schools
Tuesday Tips: Negotiating Your School’s Lease
Tuesday Tips: Lease Negotiation & Your Future Growth Plans
Tuesday Tips: Summer Facilities Projects

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to buy a school building?

It depends on the path. New construction averages 13 or more months from scoping to move-in. Moving to a forever home that needs improvements averages 9–11 months. Staying in your current space with a new or modified lease is the fastest option, averaging 6–7 months.

What’s the very first step in the timeline?

Scoping and confirming your need — typically month one on every path. This is where you define what your facility actually has to do for your school before you start evaluating buildings or contractors.

Is it a good time to buy given current construction costs?

Construction costs remain elevated — inputs are running about 40% above early-2020 levels, with continued increases expected — and tariffs on steel, aluminum, and imported furniture add to project costs.¹ That doesn’t rule out buying or building; it just makes the case for phasing construction, right-sizing your space plan, and locking in financing terms early rather than waiting.

What financial ratios should I track before committing to a facility?

Three: Average Daily Attendance at 80%+ of your facility’s capacity, a rent-to-revenue ratio of at least 5–6x, and a coverage ratio (net income to lease costs) of at least 120%.

How does Grow Schools’s facility financing work?

We buy your school and form a long-term partnership with you, leasing it back — often at reduced monthly rent, with rent increases limited to cost-of-living adjustments. Rent payments set you on a path to ownership over time.

How quickly can Grow Schools close on a building?

In as few as 90 days once you’re in the process — though as the timelines above show, the full journey from scoping your need to moving in typically takes longer, depending on which path you’re on.

Sources

HB Capital RE, “CRE Construction Costs 2026: Tariffs, Labor and the Replacement Cost Advantage”; Terrapin Consulting Group, “K-12 School Construction Cost Per Square Foot (2026)”
NerdWallet, “Commercial Real Estate Loan Rates for 2026”
Grow Schools, internal webinar data: “Money to Buy Your School” (November 2025)