Upper Arlington, Ohio Real Estate and Community Overview

Located within minutes of Ohio State University’s sprawling campus and downtown Columbus, Ohio, Upper Arlington is one of the city’s preeminent suburbs. Gorgeous tree-lined streets in older, more established neighborhoods, as well as a strong sense of community are defining features of the area. Often thought of as Columbus’ “upper-class” suburb, Upper Arlington lives up this description by hosting stately homes in prestigious subdivisions, although there also some smaller, more affordable housing options that will land buyers in one of Ohio’s Top 10 ranked public school systems. As further testament to Upper Arlington’s high rankings, Ohio Magazine voted Upper Arlington as the Best Place to Live in Ohio—quite impressive when you take into account that it’s a “just” a suburb. With a total population of roughly 32,000 spread out over 9.8 square miles, Upper Arlington is wide-ranging and offers real estate buyers several options. Close to the Ohio State University area, homes generally are in the $200-$400,000 (and way up) range as many of the neighborhoods in that area have for many years been the site of wealth and prosperity in Columbus. Also, there are several impressive homes built along the banks of the Scioto River and many of these have been valued at over $1 million. If one chooses to go to Upper Arlington’s northern end, there are several properties in older neighborhoods that are likely to be between $150,000 and $300,000. Although these are great subdivisions, the houses tend to be in need of minor repair and updating, but all of them would make excellent starter homes. As a general rule with Upper Arlington real estate, the farther you stray from the Scioto River, Ohio State, and downtown, the lower the prices for homes will be. Even so, I’d be hard-pressed to say that they are any “dumpy” or run-down areas in all Upper Arlington, which might be a result of the high tax rate ($114.95 per $1,000 valuation). Upper Arlington has a host of condos and if you aren’t looking to buy a home, you’ll find this selection among the best in Central Ohio. The newly constructed Quarry is a beautiful retreat and is close to the Scioto River waterfront, which is lined with parks and recreation spots. Along Route 33 (also called Riverside Drive) many new condominiums have been built overlooking the river and much like The Quarry and other new condo developments, these will run in the $200,000 to $500,000 area. Just to give you an idea of the demographics of the area, there are few figures that might be useful. The median age of Upper Arlington’s residents is 42.6%, far older on average than any other community in Columbus. Part of this could be due to the fact that Upper Arlington is such an established community, one of the oldest in Columbus to be exact, and many of the residents have chosen to stay because of all of the benefits that come from living in such a respected area. Also of note, the average income of Upper Arlington is about $73,000, which again, is quite a bit higher than the rest of Columbus and neighboring communities. Naturally, one would expect the median house price to be quite a bit higher as well and although it is higher, it’s not astronomical. The median home value in Upper Arlington is about $215,000. Upper Arlington is a community driven to maintain educational excellence. When you consider that an estimated 68% of the population (over age 25) of Upper Arlington has a bachelor’s degree, it is easy to see the emphasis placed on learning across generations. Even though you can expect to pay higher than average prices for real estate in Upper Arlington, take into the account the wonderful school system. For many years, Upper Arlington schools have easily surpassed nearly every other public school in Ohio in terms of graduation rates, standardized testing scores, percentages of students who go on to higher education, and teacher training (most of Upper Arlington’s teachers have master's degrees or higher). Academics are of the highest priority and Upper Arlington schools offer more choices of classes than any other public school in the state. For those with families, choosing to live in Upper Arlington might cost you more than other communities (Hilliard, Dublin, Reynoldsburg) but the quality of the educational system is priceless. Upper Arlington also offers many parks and opportunities for recreation. Aside from all the restaurants and shopping scattered throughout the area, there are many outdoor activities sponsored by the well-funded Parks and Recreation Department. With more than 17 large parks, more tennis courts than one can count, as well as nature trails along the Scioto and 3 pools, there is something to do for everyone. Of particular note is Grigg’s Reservoir, where one can bike, walk, or jog along the river as well as put a boat into the water for a day on the Scioto. For indoor activities, Upper Arlington is also well known for their variety of community classes and programs where residents can go for yoga, cooking, and personal enrichment courses. They offer many other programs specifically for seniors and the Upper Arlington Senior Center is a hotspot for cultural, musical, and creative events for Upper Arlington residents over 55. Although Upper Arlington is a prestigious and desirable community, there is a drawback—the startling and complete lack of social and racial diversity. With less than 3% of the population any race but white (that includes African Americans, Asians, Latino(a) populations) Upper Arlington has always been almost exclusively white since it’s founding in 1903. The first developers in the area made a contract stating that no blacks were allowed to live in Upper Arlington (unless they were household servants living with their employers). Even now, the effects of this deplorable racism early in Upper Arlington’s history affect the demographics of the area and have resulted in very limited diversity as well as the sense among some Columbus residents that Upper Arlington has been and will remain a racist and class-discriminating community. As a positive, however, recently Upper Arlington has made efforts to be more inviting to other cultures through educational, social, housing, and lending programs. Finding real estate to fit your needs shouldn’t be too much of a problem in Upper Arlington with so many different older neighborhoods to choose from. Keep in mind when choosing among the Columbus suburbs that Upper Arlington offers you the best schools and those with children might consider the benefits of a quality education over the fact of paying a little more for real estate. This community is notoriously close-knit and offers many great chances to get to know your neighbors and fellow community members and despite the general lack of diversity, is a wonderful place to raise a family.