Which Albany kindergarten?

Albany does not have school zones, for better or worse--you just get what you get. (You do submit preferences, but there is no priority based on address.) Fortunately, all of the schools are quite close to one another and it does seem that many people get their first choice. From the house hunting perspective, though, you don't need to worry about it.

All 3 schools in Albany are very good. You didn't mention Ocean View, you could very likely be placed there too, there is no zoning in Albany. No school is worse than the other.

OV has the most international population, the most families of color and languages spoken. Their principal sounds fantastic from what I hear. As a Cornell parent I often wish we'd been given Ocean View instead. Because many people around here carry around their biases about diverse, inclusive schools, people who think they're liberal but actually would rather not actually have to be liberal in practice - OV is often dismissed. I have friends with children at Ocean View and they couldn't be happier.

I know some people move here because they like the lack of racial diversity and would rather not have their children be mingling with particular races. I'm not making that assumption about you, but I know that it's a real concern for some. Ocean View is far more inclusive than the other 2 schools, the parent population has a significant number of international post grads, studying while raising children - making it exactly the kind of school in which kids and teachers will thrive.

I don't know what your intention was when you excluded Ocean View from your question, but ALL the schools in Albany are just as good as each other academically. 

I don't have much to say about Marin, my friends are happy there, and we are happy at Cornell.

Albany does not "zone" the elementary school assignments.  The district will consider a preference for the school closest to your house, but there's no guarantee.  They'll place your child(ren) wherever there is space for them in the appropriate grade level.  Also note that there are plans afoot for significant renovations for seismic safety, and elementary students may get moved around in the next few years for that reason.  Fortunately, in Albany your kids can easily walk or bike to school no matter where they are placed, and you cannot go wrong with any of the three elementary schools; they are all excellent.

Marin and Cornell truly are very comparable schools, with the same academic quality, similar levels of parent engagement, and similar demographics.  Among all three Albany elementary schools, the differences are slight, but to the extent they exist are what you would expect based on their geography: Ocean View tends to have slightly more students of color and English learners, and it has the largest campus; Marin tends to have slightly more high-income students, a slightly higher level of parent volunteerism, and is the smallest school physically; Cornell is in the middle on all counts.  There's been a significant effort in the last few years to "equalize" the three schools' offerings and fundraising, so the differences now are probably even less than they were when my kids (now in middle and high school) were at Marin.

If you dont have kid already in cornel, most likely you kid will get into Marin. Cornel is so popular because parents are concern about future construction work in OV and Marin. Our girl got into OV last year and it was out third choice (first 2 were Cornel). However, I heard that construction will be done in OV first then Marin. Most likely, your kid will be done with elementry school by the time the construction starts in Marin.

I would add one thing to this discussion regarding all three of these wonderful Albany schools.  Some parents who plan to live in Albany for a long time prefer Marin and Cornell, not because they are racially biased, but because many of the smart and wonderful postdoc parents at OV will soon leave Albany, taking their children with them.  If your kids go to OV, they are more likely to have their friends leave the area because postdoc parents very often move when the postdoc completes.