Surrey movers exploring Langley housing options: what we found

So, the Vancouver Giants are moving to Langley, did you hear? If even sports teams are doing it, it kinda makes you wonder if YOU should move to Langley, right? Well, as Surrey movers, we thought we’d scope out some info on that topic, since, after all, our job is to help people move to Langley, and other places alike. But our job always works best when our moving company customers have a place to move into first!

So let’s look at a few factors surrounding Langley housing options.

What does it cost to move to Langley?

Housing prices in Langley

The price of a house in Langley may not be THAT much different than in other Vancouver suburbs. But, one big factor to consider is that PRICE does not always assume VALUE. You could be getting more ‘house for your buck’ (or ‘land for your buck’!) when you move to Langley. And, as Surrey movers who move more than just houses, we can tell you that price also depends on what you’re looking for. Is it land that you can farm or build on? Is it a small condo? A $30K mobile home? A brand new build? A giant house in a nice rural area? An ice rink for a sports team to play in?

Using a property search website, you can find an array of housing and property prices, depending on your budget and what you’re looking for:

https://www.rew.ca/properties/areas/langley-bc

But to give you a ballpark idea, using what’s called a “benchmark price,” a detached home in Langley was averaging $747,900 not too long ago (from time of publishing). This is according to this Langley Advance article, which also outlined the record-sales high for the Langley housing market in recent months. So if you want to be one of those people calling up Surrey movers any time soon, get in early, cuz the stats seem to only be going up from the sounds of that report.

And, as one real estate agent is noted as saying in that article, the value of moving to Langley is a ‘gem’ people are starting to discover: “We have all the amenities – we have everything that everyone in the Lower Mainland wants at a fraction of the price and with the new bridge it makes commuting really easy” (source: Matt McGill).

Although, others are complaining that if even moving to Langley is getting more expensive, the options are getting slimmer for most young people in the area. This is problematic because young people are said to be an economic force for Vancouver. And let’s not forget – Langley is still a commute for many jobs in the city. So if you work in Downtown Vancouver, and hope to live a comfortable, commuting life in still-expensive Langley, you may end up moving to another Canadian city with less of a real-estate glass ceiling being built around it. That is, if you’re going to move anyway. Or, you could opt for a work-from-home job, if you can find one! If not, there’s always the Vancouver Giants. Maybe they need a new player.

By the way, since we’re talking about home buying in this section, keep in mind you may be exempt from some property taxes or property transfer taxes if you’re moving into a newly built home. You’re welcome for that.

Living costs in Langley

Now, of course cost of living is going to depend on your lifestyle. But on average, is it cheaper to live your life in Langley, after you move there and sort out all that fuss over home prices?

Well, if we use sites with questionable algorithms as the best we can use for our comparison here, this site on Numbeo.com says “You would need around 4,499.53C$ in Langley, BC to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 5,600.00C$ in Vancouver (assuming you rent in both cities).”

That site has an interesting breakdown of what it would cost to live, right down to the cost of an onion. Which is 1 cent cheaper in Vancouver by the way, according to our super very amazing credible source linked to above. Joking. We can’t actually verify that.

But, if you use this nicer site (which seems more credible because it has a Government of BC logo on it), you’ll find that, if you make $50K a year (and some other expense details you can customize to fudge the numbers), you would be accruing debt of $2,210 per month living in Downtown Vancouver, as opposed to just $56 of debt per month living in Langley. Sounds promising, doesn’t it? Again, we’re joking.

According to movingincanada.com, though no date was given on the time of publishing, nor a source, it is stated that, “Langley has the most reasonable industrial tax base of cities in the Lower Mainland.”

We can use another metric to help us calculate living cost, based on the thing people in Canada probably hate paying for the most: gas!

The Langley times reported a “mystifying” jump in gas prices for the entire Lower Mainland in 2015, but did mention that Langley gas prices were lower than in Metro Vancouver, due to the absence of the Translink tax. And about a month earlier that year, the paper also published an opinion piece, noting that, aside from a gas price fall in Langley, the Environment Minister, who is also the MLA for Langley, really likes the carbon tax. What does this mean? Well, we can guess that gas is probably going to be a wee-bit less expensive in Langley compared to Vancouver, but not as cheap as it is in other parts of North America.

However, using a site like GasBuddy, you can sometimes find Langley gas prices equal to, or more expensive than in Vancouver. In short, don’t count on this one being a huge money-saver for your dream move to Langley.

Our surrey moving company has looked into moves to other rural cities:

In general, we would say that if you want to compare pros and cons of moving to Langley with those of moving to another suburb, you should check out our resources and research on other places:

• 3 reasons why moving to Chilliwack is a great idea!

• Moving to Abbotsford? 3 reasons why it’s a good choice!

• Getting to Know Coquitlam BC

• Best Benefits of Moving to Surrey, B.C.

• Moving to Richmond? 5 Reasons for a Richmond Move

• 5 Reasons Why You Should Move To New Westminster

• Moving to Metro Vancouver: 5 great reasons to move to a suburb in the Metro Vancouver area

What are good locations to move to in Langley?

Location, location, location, right? Even in a place as rural as Langley (which is still not THAT rural), there are neighbourhoods to pick from.

Langley has a couple areas that can be often referred to as just ‘Langley.’ There is Langley Township (which includes Aldergrove, by the way), and there’s the City of Langley. This site explains the neighbourhoods in the Township of Langley. And this site explains the neighbourhoods in the City of Langley.

As this Vancity Buzz advertorial will tell you, you can get some pretty nice homes in the cute village-like setting of Fort Langley (not to be confused with just plain ‘Langley’, which encompasses the area). There are also parks nearby, and great views of the mountains (go figure…we are still in B.C. afterall). Fort Langley was reported as having the most educated in the area by the Langley Times in 2014.

Also according to that link above, next to Fort Langley, Walnut Grove, Brookswood-Fernridge and Willoughby (Willowbrook) are the next most affluent neighbourhoods when considering a move to Langley (or what a house will cost). Aldergrove, Willoughby and Murrayville had the lowest income spectrums.

Then, there is Downtown Langley. This is where you will find your stores and shopping areas. The Downtown Langley Business Association has a website listing all the great reasons you should visit (or move there?). Check it out here: https://www.downtownlangley.com/

The Rural Area (really, that’s what it’s called), makes up 75% of the Township of Langley (see link above). If you’re not a farmer and don’t want to be, it’s ok, because you can still consider moving to Langley just for the fun of being near a winery or golf courses.

Attractions to live near in Langley

Some notable landmark destinations attracting visitors from other parts of the Lower Mainland to Langley include:

• Trinity Western University
• Kwantlen College campus
• Greater Vancouver Zoo
• Fort Langley National Historic Site (and see this article on why it’s so fun there)
• Willowbrook Mall
• The Canadian Museum of Flight
• Cascades Casino Resort

For more about attractions and things to do, which will likely make up your lifestyle if you move to Langley, check out the Tourism Langley site: https://www.tourism-langley.ca/

Surrey movers and their thoughts on moving to Langley?

Langley is seeming like a vibrant place to live, if you like rural life, that small-town feel, and slightly cheaper housing than in the big city of Vancouver. But housing options are getting more expensive (by the minute it seems). So before Interior or Northern BC turns into your Langley-as-an-option to move to, it would be best to snatch up a home there soon. That said, if your work and current life is in the city, expect a drastic change, and one that you’d need to consider carefully before you move to Langley.

Visit our website to learn more about about our Langely moving services.