Ticsmon jr is starting high school this time and I presume we are going to need a computer for homework and stuff. It’ll be a family computer too as our laptop is almost dead.  I’d love an IMac but don’t think I can justify the price. Any recommendations?

Desktop = cheaper, more upgradable, takes up more room.  Laptop = portable.

Stay with well known brands, avoid store brands like the plague.  Dell outlet is always worth a look for a bargain, Lenovo for build quality.

Literally any computer you buy will be up to doing “homework.”

Budget for backup solutions, be that a USB HDD or some sort of cloud storage.

Anything computery at school will assume a PC rather than a Mac I’d expect.

What’s wrong with the one you’ve already got?  An OS reinstall / upgrade and a couple of hardware upgrades (SSD and RAM) might give it a new lease of life.