VANPLEX
David Babakaiff
Written by David Babakaiff — Co-Founder, VanPlex | 25+ Years BC Construction

Start Here | Best Value Areas

Where you get the most home for the money

Twenty neighbourhoods ranked by finished square feet per dollar, measured from homes on the market right now. This is a measurement, not an opinion about which places are pleasant. What each one costs you in exchange is stated alongside it.

The short answer

Measured by finished space per dollar, Lower Landing in Chilliwack leads at $395 per square foot, about 52% below the regional median of $824. The median home there is 1,587 sq ft and lists at $637,400. Every area on this list trades distance for space.

Regional median
$824
Best per sq ft
$395
Its median size
1,587 sq ft
Areas ranked
20

The twenty areas where a dollar buys the most floor space

Only areas with six or more active listings appear, because value rankings are exactly where a small sample does the most damage. Two listings in a quiet pocket can make it look like a bargain that does not exist.

Ordered by lowest median price per square foot. Median size in square feet.
Neighbourhood City Active Median price Per sq ft Median size Townhouse / half duplex
Lower Landing Chilliwack 6 $607,400 to $767,400 $376 to $408 1,587 5 / 1
Mission Mission 42 $837,400 $415 1,881 21 / 20
Bolivar Heights Surrey 11 $1,394,000 $460 2,770 0 / 11
Cedar Hills Surrey 7 $1,074,900 to $1,499,000 $433 to $499 2,314 0 / 7
Abbotsford West Abbotsford 12 $729,900 $493 1,580 12 / 0
Central Abbotsford Abbotsford 21 $749,900 $502 1,522 16 / 5
Abbotsford East Abbotsford 21 $959,900 $508 2,000 7 / 13
Queen Mary Park Surrey 11 $909,000 $512 1,784 9 / 2
Sullivan Station Surrey 22 $879,900 $520 1,894 18 / 4
Fraser Heights Surrey 11 $999,999 $524 1,969 8 / 3
Pacific Douglas Surrey 7 $1,085,400 to $1,429,999 $470 to $610 2,489 2 / 5
Annieville Delta 7 $1,270,999 to $1,311,540 $511 to $587 2,390 0 / 7
Fleetwood Tynehead Surrey 15 $1,049,900 $550 1,911 11 / 4
Scottsdale Delta 8 $1,324,450 $554 2,352 0 / 8
Albion Maple Ridge 9 $759,900 $558 1,445 9 / 0
Cloverdale Surrey 16 $939,450 $567 1,664 9 / 7
Willoughby Heights Langley 83 $999,800 $570 1,702 59 / 17
South Meadows Pitt Meadows 6 $1,049,450 to $1,299,000 $501 to $654 2,206 3 / 3
Forest Glen Burnaby 13 $1,750,000 $611 2,703 2 / 11
Grandview Heights Surrey 41 $1,039,888 $614 1,688 25 / 16

A dash means fewer than four active listings, which is too few to publish a figure for. Rows with four to seven listings show a range instead of a median.

The ones that are cheap and large, not cheap and small

A low price per square foot can happen two ways. Either the land is cheap, or the homes are small enough that the total price stays low while the rate stays high. These areas are the first kind: their median home is at or above the regional median size of 1,586 sq ft, and they still price below the regional median per square foot.

  • Lower Landing Chilliwack

    1,587 sq ft median at $395 per square foot, listing around $637,400.

    6 active listings, 5 townhouses and 1 half duplexes

  • Mission Mission

    1,881 sq ft median at $415 per square foot, listing around $837,400.

    42 active listings, 21 townhouses and 20 half duplexes

  • Bolivar Heights Surrey

    2,770 sq ft median at $460 per square foot, listing around $1,394,000.

    11 active listings, 0 townhouses and 11 half duplexes

  • Cedar Hills Surrey

    2,314 sq ft median at $471 per square foot, listing around $1,099,900.

    7 active listings, 0 townhouses and 7 half duplexes

  • Abbotsford East Abbotsford

    2,000 sq ft median at $508 per square foot, listing around $959,900.

    21 active listings, 7 townhouses and 13 half duplexes

  • Queen Mary Park Surrey

    1,784 sq ft median at $512 per square foot, listing around $909,000.

    11 active listings, 9 townhouses and 2 half duplexes

Before you shortlist on price alone

Works well if

  • ✓ You need floor space more than you need a short commute, which usually means a growing family
  • ✓ You drive to work, or your workplace is already outside the downtown core
  • ✓ You want a four or five bedroom home, which the cheaper areas carry far more of
  • ✓ A monthly strata fee of $250 to $330 suits you better than $450 to $570

Does not work if

  • ✕ Your commute is downtown and you do not want to drive it
  • ✕ You need to be inside a specific school catchment that only exists closer in
  • ✕ You are buying largely for resale and expect the tightest markets to move first
  • ✕ One car is your household limit and the area has no frequent transit

Check before you offer

  • → Open the actual travel time from the address to where you work, at the hour you travel
  • → Check the strata fee on the specific listing, not the area median
  • → Confirm whether it is freehold or strata, which changes what you own and what you pay
  • → Look at how many listings the area has right now, since a thin market cuts both ways

Where the best value areas actually are

This is the part a ranking cannot show you. Every area on the list above, plotted, so the distance you are trading for the space is visible rather than implied.

300 of 369 homes plotted. 17 more have coordinates but were left off to keep the map readable. The ones shown are spread evenly across the price range rather than taken from one end. 52 listings have no coordinates in the feed and cannot be placed. Click a pin for the photo, the price, and a Street View link. Zoom with the plus and minus buttons or by pinching.

Homes in the best value areas that are also large

77 more active listings are not shown here. Search every active listing . Prices are the list price. Most new homes have GST added on top.

Common questions

How do you define best value?

As finished square feet per dollar, nothing more. It is a measurement, not a judgment about whether a neighbourhood is nice. We do not rate schools, safety, or character here, because those are not things a listing feed can measure honestly. What the data can show is how much house your money buys, and where.

If these areas are such good value, why is everyone not buying there?

Because the saving is paid for in time. Nearly every area on this list is further from downtown, further from SkyTrain, or both. A buyer who drives to a workplace in Burnaby and a buyer who takes transit to downtown will value the same square foot very differently. The number is the same for both. The decision is not.

Are the cheaper areas cheaper because the homes are worse?

The data does not support that reading. Every home in this set was built in the last two years to the same provincial building code and carries the same warranty framework. Several of the best-value areas have larger median homes than the expensive ones, not smaller.

Should I buy on price per square foot alone?

No. It tells you what the land is charging you and nothing else. Two homes at the same price per square foot can differ completely on strata fee, parking, whether pets are allowed, and whether it is freehold or strata. Use this page to build a shortlist of areas, then compare the actual homes.

Where these figures come from

See the homes behind these numbers

Every figure on this page comes from listings you can open. Search the full set of newly built townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses, and filter by price, bedrooms, freehold or strata, pets, and parking.

Search homes for sale Compare every neighbourhood