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If you’ve been waiting for a better opportunity to buy real estate in Langley or South Surrey, this is one of the more interesting markets we’ve seen in years.

Over the last month, I’ve been looking at everything from roughly $400,000 condos to multi-million-dollar farms across Langley, South Surrey, Campbell Valley, Bradner and the surrounding Fraser Valley.

There are definitely opportunities out there.

But I wouldn’t say everything is a deal.

Buyers are hesitant, listings are sitting longer and people are taking their time comparing properties before making an offer. At the same time, especially with detached homes in Langley, I’m finding that a lot of the available inventory seems to have one major compromise.

It backs onto a busy road. The layout doesn’t work. There’s no ensuite. There’s no realistic way to add a suite. Or the home simply needs too much work for the price.

That’s why I don’t think the best buying opportunities right now are necessarily the cheapest listings.

The opportunities are in properties where the price, location, usability and long-term value actually line up.

Here are the seven areas of the Langley and South Surrey real estate market I would be watching most closely right now.

1. Farms and Acreage in Langley and Abbotsford

This may be the biggest buying opportunity I’m seeing in the Fraser Valley right now.

There have been some substantial price adjustments on Langley farms and acreages, particularly around Campbell Valley and South Langley, along with Bradner and other rural parts of Abbotsford.

For buyers looking for approximately 5 to 10 acres, I’m seeing opportunities in roughly the $1.2 million to $2.2 million range that would have carried much higher expectations a few years ago.

Some properties that were previously positioned closer to $2.6 million to $3 million have come down substantially.

One current Campbell Valley acreage gives a good example of how much the market has changed. The property sold for $4 million in 2022 and is currently listed at approximately $3.2 million.

That doesn’t automatically make every acreage a good buy.

With rural property, buyers need to look beyond the house and carefully consider usable acreage, ALR restrictions, zoning, drainage, wells and septic systems, barns and outbuildings, access, soil conditions and future building potential.

But if owning land has always been the goal, I think this is a market worth revisiting.

You can also browse the broader selection of farms and acreages for sale.

2. Detached Homes in Murrayville Under $1.5 Million

Murrayville remains one of Langley’s most established family neighbourhoods, and there are now detached opportunities appearing below approximately $1.5 million.

That is a price range I think move-up buyers should be paying attention to.

The important distinction, however, is that having a lot of listings does not necessarily mean we have a lot of good listings.

Many of the detached homes I’ve been through recently have one noticeable compromise.

It may be a busy road, awkward floor plan, lack of an ensuite, poor suite potential, an unusual lot or a significant amount of updating required.

Because buyers are less rushed today, they don’t have to overlook those issues the way they often did during the peak market.

My advice right now is to be patient.

When a properly located and functional Murrayville home comes up around the $1.3 million to $1.5 million range, that can be a much better opportunity than buying something simply because the asking price looks inexpensive.

You can see current Langley homes for sale.

3. Brookswood Detached Homes and Large Lots

Brookswood real estate is another area I would watch closely.

From what I’m seeing, Brookswood has been relatively steady compared with some other parts of the market, but opportunities are still appearing.

Older homes and properties where a large portion of the value is in the land can be found around the $1 million to $1.1 million range, while some detached homes are appearing around or below the $1.3 million level.

Brookswood continues to attract buyers because of its larger lots, mature trees, established neighbourhoods and long-term land value.

One current Brookswood property, for example, is listed around $1.39 million after previously selling for $1.65 million in April 2022.

That is roughly a 16% difference between the previous sale price and today’s asking price.

That does not mean Brookswood as a whole has fallen 16%, but it is a good illustration of how different today’s buying environment can be compared with the 2022 peak.

For buyers willing to renovate, hold long term or potentially rebuild in the future, I still like Brookswood.

See the latest Brookswood homes for sale here.

4. Walnut Grove Homes With Suites Under $1.2 Million

Walnut Grove is interesting because it appears to be holding its value better than several other parts of Langley.

To me, that shows there is still strong underlying demand for the neighbourhood.

At the same time, buyers can occasionally find detached homes with suite potential, or existing suites, around or below the $1.2 million range.

That can make a major difference for somebody trying to move from a condo or townhome into a detached house while keeping monthly ownership costs manageable.

Walnut Grove continues to benefit from established schools, shopping, recreation, Highway 1 access and a limited supply of comparable detached neighbourhoods.

I wouldn’t describe Walnut Grove as a distressed market.

In fact, its relative strength is one of the reasons I like it.

If you can find the right property at the right price in an area that continues to hold demand, that can be a better long-term purchase than simply chasing the neighbourhood with the largest price reduction.

5. Grandview Townhomes in South Surrey

If you’re looking for a townhome in South Surrey, Grandview is one of the clearest areas where buyers currently have more leverage.

There is a lot of inventory, listings are taking longer to sell and buyers have time to compare several similar properties before deciding what they actually want.

That changes the buying process considerably.

Instead of rushing into the first available townhome, buyers can compare location within the complex, road exposure, parking, floor plan, yard space, strata fees, upgrades and overall condition.

One current Grandview townhouse is listed at approximately $690,000 after selling for around $782,000 in 2022.

That particular property has circumstances that make it different from a standard resale, so I wouldn’t use that example as a benchmark for the entire neighbourhood.

But the broader point remains: buyers have considerably more selection and negotiating power in the South Surrey townhome market than they did during the peak.

A few years ago, buyers were often asking:

“How do I win this townhome?”

Today, they’re much more likely to ask:

“Which one do I actually like best?”

6. Willoughby Townhomes

Willoughby real estate is another part of Langley where buyers have considerably more choice.

There are many relatively similar townhouse developments competing for the same group of buyers.

That creates leverage.

If one unit backs onto a busy road, has an awkward layout or is poorly located within the complex, buyers don’t necessarily have to accept that compromise.

There may be another option a few blocks away.

This is one of the biggest differences between today’s market and the peak.

Several years ago, buyers often had to decide how aggressive they were willing to be just to secure a property.

Today, you can actually compare the available inventory, review recent sales and decide whether the home really deserves its asking price.

You can browse the latest Willoughby homes and townhomes for sale here.

7. Condos Around $400,000 to $600,000

Condos may offer one of the most accessible opportunities in the current market.

Depending on the building and neighbourhood, I’m seeing many condo values approximately 15% to 20% below where comparable properties were trading around the peak.

To put that into perspective, a 20% change on a $500,000 property is $100,000.

That is significant for a first-time buyer, downsizer or investor.

But I think the bigger advantage today is the buying process itself.

Buyers generally have more time to review strata documents, compare buildings, look at recent comparable sales, understand upcoming strata expenses, negotiate price and terms, and complete proper due diligence.

During the peak market, buyers were often making major decisions extremely quickly.

Today, you can usually slow the process down.

For buyers looking at the lower end of the market, you can browse current Langley condos under $499,000 or use my full MLS property search to compare condos across Langley, South Surrey and the Fraser Valley.

What I’m Seeing From Buyers Right Now

The biggest trend I’m seeing right now is hesitation.

Buyers are still looking.

They’re booking showings, watching new listings and comparing properties.

But they are much more selective.

They are not automatically writing an offer simply because they like a home.

They are looking at what else is available, what recently sold, how long the property has been listed and whether the asking price really makes sense.

That is one of the main reasons listings are taking longer to sell.

What Today’s Market Is Telling Sellers

There is also an important distinction sellers need to understand between getting showings and getting offers.

If your property is receiving regular showings every week but nobody is writing an offer, there is a good chance buyers are telling you that the price doesn’t quite match the product.

Your price may be attractive enough to get buyers through the door, but once they compare the home with the alternatives, they are choosing something else.

If you’re receiving virtually no showings, and similar properties are also receiving very little activity, that can be different.

There may simply be a very small number of active buyers looking for that type of property at the moment.

Unique properties are different again.

If there are very few comparable sales and the buyer pool is naturally small, constantly reducing the price doesn’t always create a buyer.

Sometimes the correct strategy is to hold your position and wait for the right person to come along.

So, Is Now a Good Time to Buy in Langley or South Surrey?

For the right buyer, I think it can be.

But I wouldn’t recommend buying something simply because it’s cheaper than it was in 2022.

The better question is:

Is this a good property at a good price?

Those are two very different things.

Right now, buyers have something they haven’t consistently had for several years:

Time and negotiating power.

You can look at multiple properties.

You can walk away from bad layouts.

You can avoid busy roads if they bother you.

You can think about suite potential and future resale value.

And you can wait for the right property instead of feeling pressured to buy the first available one.

The opportunities are there.

You just need to know where to look.

Looking for the Best Value in Langley or South Surrey?

If you’re considering buying and want to know where I’m personally seeing the strongest value, feel free to reach out.

I’m constantly reviewing new listings, recent sales, price reductions and buyer activity across Langley, South Surrey, Brookswood, Willoughby, Murrayville, Walnut Grove, Campbell Valley and the Fraser Valley acreage market.

Sometimes the best opportunity isn’t the property with the biggest price reduction.

It’s the property where the price, location, usability and long-term value all make sense.

Jared Gibbons
Royal LePage Little Oak Realty

604-928-1361

If you have looked at a Fraser Valley poultry farm listing and wondered why two properties with similar acreage and similar barns are priced hundreds of thousands of dollars apart, the answer is almost always quota. In British Columbia, the right to produce chicken, eggs, turkey and broiler hatching eggs commercially is regulated, finite, and separately valued from the land it sits on. Understanding how it works is the difference between reading a listing correctly and badly misjudging what you are buying.

Supply management in plain language

Canada regulates five farm sectors under supply management: dairy, chicken, turkey, table eggs and broiler hatching eggs. The system rests on three pillars. Production is planned to match domestic demand, imports are limited through tariff-rate quotas, and farmers are paid prices built from cost-of-production formulas rather than left to swing with commodity markets.

The practical result for a grower is stable, predictable income. The practical result for a buyer is that you cannot simply build barns and start producing at commercial scale. You need quota, and quota is only issued or transferred with the approval of the relevant marketing board.

The boards that govern each sector

National agencies set each province's share of production. In BC, provincial boards then administer that share, allocate quota to individual producers, and set the rules for transfers:

• Chicken (broiler) production is administered by the BC Chicken Marketing Board.

• Table egg production is administered by the BC Egg Marketing Board.

• Turkey production is administered by the BC Turkey Marketing Board.

• Broiler hatching eggs fall under the BC Broiler Hatching Egg Commission.

All of these operate under the Natural Products Marketing (BC) Act and are supervised by the BC Farm Industry Review Board, which hears appeals of board decisions and conducts supervisory reviews of how the boards operate. If a producer disputes a quota decision, BCFIRB is where that goes.

How quota is actually measured

Quota is not one uniform thing, and the unit differs by sector. Chicken quota is expressed as kilograms of live weight per production period, with production allocated in recurring cycles through the year rather than continuously. Turkey quota is likewise measured in kilograms of live weight. Egg quota is measured in laying hens, so a layer farm is described by the number of birds it is entitled to house rather than by output weight.

In every case, quota is attached to approved premises. The board needs to know where the birds will be housed, and the barn has to meet the requirements before allotted quota can be produced there. That is why barn condition and board approval status matter as much as raw square footage when a farm is valued.

What happens to quota in a sale

This is the single most misunderstood point in poultry farm transactions: quota does not run with the land. Buying the property does not automatically make you the holder of the quota that was produced on it.

A transfer has to be applied for by both parties and approved by the applicable board, and the quota is only part of the deal if the Contract of Purchase and Sale expressly says so. Each board maintains its own transfer rules covering eligibility, minimum and maximum holdings, premises approval and timing. The egg sector generally moves quota through BC Egg's Provincial Quota Exchange, with defined exceptions such as a bona fide sale of a going concern. The chicken board requires approved premises before transferred quota can be allotted.

What that means in a transaction is straightforward. Quota terms need to be spelled out in writing, the transfer application needs a realistic timeline attached to it, and subject removal should not happen on the assumption that board approval is a formality. Our guide to buying a chicken farm in BC walks through the sequence in more detail.

What quota does to Fraser Valley farm values

A supply-managed poultry farm is really three assets sold together: the land, the barns and equipment, and the quota. In the Fraser Valley, where ALR land is expensive and large level parcels are scarce, all three carry real weight, but quota and barn capacity are usually what separate a working operation from a nice acreage with outbuildings.

Quota also behaves differently from real property. It is a valuable, transferable entitlement, but it is a regulated one. Boards can adjust allocations, and holdings are subject to ongoing compliance. Lenders understand this well, and agricultural lenders will finance quota, but the underwriting is its own conversation separate from the mortgage on the dirt.

Geography matters too. Abbotsford poultry farms sit in the densest concentration of chicken and egg production in the province, with processors, feed mills and veterinary services close at hand. Chilliwack poultry farms tend to offer a friendlier land basis for the same barn and quota package, which is why expanding growers watch that market closely. Langley poultry farms combine supply-managed income with some of the most valuable ALR ground in BC, and large contiguous parcels there are genuinely scarce.

What to verify before you write an offer

On any supply-managed farm, the due diligence list runs well past the usual home inspection. Confirm the quota holding and the exact amount in writing. Confirm the premises are board-approved and that approval will survive the transfer. Confirm whether any quota is leased rather than owned. Confirm the barn's rated capacity against the quota it is meant to serve. Check biosecurity infrastructure and the property's history with avian influenza control zones. Check ALR status, zoning, manure management and setbacks. Confirm the GST treatment of the transaction with your accountant, because the quota component is treated differently from residential value.

Buyers coming from residential real estate are often surprised by how much of the value sits in paperwork rather than in the buildings. That is the nature of a regulated sector, and it is manageable, but it needs to be handled deliberately rather than discovered after subject removal.

Thinking about buying or selling

A large share of poultry farm sales in the Fraser Valley never reach a public listing. Sellers prefer confidential transactions and quota-eligible buyers are a small, known group. If you are looking to acquire, browse poultry farms for sale in BC, or narrow by sector to chicken farms, turkey farms or egg and layer farms.

If you are considering selling, or you simply want a current read on what your farm and quota are worth in today's market, call or text Jared Gibbons at 604-928-1361 for a confidential evaluation.

If you shop the Safeway at 16 Avenue and 128 Street, the sign on the door hasn't changed — but the ownership behind it has.

Crombie REIT, a Nova Scotia–based real estate investment trust, confirmed in its second-quarter report that it picked up the Ocean Park Safeway back in late April for $12.7 million. The seller was a subsidiary of Empire, the parent company behind the Safeway banner, and Empire is also one of Crombie's largest unitholders. After closing, Crombie turned around and leased the 30,000 sq. ft. building right back to an Empire subsidiary — so the grocery store keeps operating exactly as it has.

One clarification worth making, because it trips people up locally: the Safeway shares a parking lot with Ocean Park Shopping Centre, but it sits on its own legal parcel. The rest of the plaza — Rexall, BC Liquor, Coast Capital, Cobs Bread and the others — is separately owned and wasn't part of this transaction.

The detail that actually matters for homeowners

Crombie sorts its holdings into two buckets: income-producing and redevelopment. The Ocean Park Safeway landed in the income-producing column. In plain terms, the plan is to collect rent from a working grocery store, not to fence it off and start pouring concrete. That could shift years down the road — these designations aren't permanent — but there's no tower proposal sitting behind this purchase today.

I bring that up because I get the question constantly across Crescent Beach and Ocean Park: is the shopping centre going to get redeveloped? Right now, for this site, the answer is no.

Why Crombie's name is worth knowing

The reason locals should recognize this owner is that Crombie is genuinely busy in BC. Of the 25 sites on its major development pipeline, 12 are in this province — most of them Safeways sitting on transit-adjacent land the REIT has flagged as having room for housing above.

A few from the list that are close to home:

• Surrey (8860 152 Street) — labelled a medium-term project, with no redevelopment plans made public yet and no entitlements secured. If you're tracking that corridor, it's worth watching Surrey homes for sale in the surrounding blocks.

• Port Coquitlam — on the long-term list, alongside New Westminster. Same story for Port Coquitlam and New Westminster buyers.

• Commercial-Broadway in Vancouver — the furthest along by a wide margin. Council approved the three-tower project last year after a heavily contested public hearing.

• Lynn Valley in North Vancouver — a preliminary application for roughly 479 units across four buildings, now a 50/50 partnership with Wesgroup, still short of a formal rezoning submission.

The pattern is hard to miss. Aging grocery-anchored sites on big surface lots near transit are where a lot of the region's next housing is going to come from. If you want to understand how that gets approved in our area, my zoning guide walks through the basics. Ocean Park just isn't in that queue yet.

What I'd take away from it

Two things.

First, a stable, well-tenanted grocery anchor a short drive from home is a quiet asset when you go to sell. Walkable daily amenities show up in buyer behaviour long before they show up in listing copy — something I factor in on every home evaluation I do in this area.

Second, if you own within a few blocks of any of these Crombie-held sites, it's worth knowing where your neighbourhood sits on that pipeline. A near-term redevelopment and a long-term one have very different implications for timing a sale — and if you're on the buying side, my home buying guide covers what to look at before you commit.

If you're weighing a move in South Surrey, Ocean Park, White Rock or Crescent Beach and want a straight read on what your home is worth in today's market, give me a call at 604-928-1361 or get in touch. Happy to walk you through it.

Land gets valued differently than houses. A home is priced on what it is right now — the finishes, the layout, the condition of the roof. A development site is priced on what it's permitted to become, how quickly that permission can be obtained, and who will want the finished product once it exists.

That's a different kind of due diligence, and it's worth walking through with a real example.

The site

16216 20 Avenue is a 1.13-acre holding in Pacific Douglas, South Surrey — roughly 49,136 square feet, with just over 50 feet of frontage and nearly 300 feet of depth. There's an existing 3,726 sq ft basement-entry home on it, built in 1972, along with a barn and a fenced yard. It's on septic with municipal water.

The house isn't really the story here, and the listing doesn't pretend otherwise: it's offered as-is, where-is. What you're buying is the dirt and its position.

Why the location matters

The site sits within South Surrey's Highway 99 Corridor Plan, which the City has designated for business park and light industrial uses. That designation is the single most important fact about the property, because it tells you what the land is being planned for rather than what's on it today.

The access profile backs it up. You're immediately onto Highway 99, connected to established truck routes, minutes from the U.S. border, and within reach of two international airports. For anything logistics-adjacent — distribution, service trades, light manufacturing — that combination is the whole ballgame. Industrial land in Metro Vancouver is famously scarce, and land with genuine highway and border access is scarcer still.

Then there's the surrounding investment. The 24th Avenue commercial node, Grandview, and Morgan Crossing have all drawn substantial commercial development into this part of South Surrey over the past decade. Growth in one corridor tends to pull demand into adjacent ones. That's the long-term case.

The questions a buyer should be asking

If you're evaluating a site like this, the work sits in a few places.

Current zoning versus planned use. The parcel is currently zoned RA. The corridor plan contemplates business park and light industrial. The gap between those two things is a rezoning process, and how long it takes and what it costs belongs in your pro forma from day one. Our zoning reference and the City's land use plans are the place to start.

Servicing. The property is on septic today. Any industrial or business park development will need sanitary servicing, and where the nearest connection sits — and who pays to extend it — is a real number, not a footnote.

Assembly potential. At 1.13 acres, this is a standalone parcel with a narrow frontage and a deep lot. Whether it works alone or wants a neighbour depends on what you're building. Mapping the ownership around it is worth doing early; the GIS tools make that straightforward.

Holding costs. Rezoning takes time. The existing house can generate rental income during that window, which changes the carrying math considerably compared to raw land.

Who this suits

Three types of buyer typically look at a parcel like this. The land banker, who is comfortable holding through an entitlement cycle and betting on the corridor plan progressing. The owner-operator, who needs a yard and a building with highway access and would rather build to suit than lease. And the developer looking at multi-tenant industrial or commercial, where demand in this submarket has been consistent.

What all three have in common is that they're underwriting the corridor, not the cottage.

Talk it through

Development land rewards early questions. If you're weighing this site or something like it, the useful conversation happens before you're under contract — zoning path, servicing, timelines, comparable sales in the corridor. Have a look at the commercial listings and available land, then get in touch and we'll go through the specifics.

Jared Gibbons PREC · Royal LePage Little Oak Realty · 604-928-1361

For anyone who lives here, it isn't news. But it's nice to see it in print again: Crescent Beach has landed on a Top 10 list of Canada's best beaches for the second year in a row, coming in at number six nationally.

The ranking comes from new research that pulled TripAdvisor data on 50 of the country's top beaches across the seven coastal provinces. Researchers weighed visitor ratings and review volume alongside how often people described a beach as "beautiful," "clean," "peaceful," or "romantic." Crescent Beach scored a 4.5-star average, drawn from 589 reviews rated above four stars.

The standout stat: Crescent Beach recorded the second-highest number of "romantic" mentions of any beach in the country. Reviewers repeatedly described it as a hidden gem at sunset — which is exactly the kind of thing residents have quietly known for decades. The study also singled out the waterfront path and the long pier, a favourite for walkers and fishers alike.

Crescent Beach wasn't the only BC entry. Chesterman Beach in Tofino took the top spot nationally, and Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park in Parksville finished third. Three of Canada's top six beaches are in British Columbia — and only one of them is a 45-minute drive from downtown Vancouver.

Why a Beach Ranking Matters to Homeowners

It's easy to file this under "nice trivia." It's actually a little more than that.

Waterfront communities like Crescent Beach are supply-constrained in a way most neighbourhoods aren't. The shoreline doesn't expand. The village core doesn't densify. There are only so many character cottages, only so many homes with a real ocean view, and only so many properties where you can walk to the pier before your coffee gets cold. When national attention lands on a place with a fixed number of doors, the effect on demand tends to show up in the numbers.

National recognition also broadens the buyer pool. Buyers relocating from Ontario, Alberta, or overseas often don't have Crescent Beach on their radar — White Rock and Ocean Park get the search traffic. A Top 10 placement puts the neighbourhood in front of people who are researching where to land before they've ever set foot in the Lower Mainland. Two consecutive years on the list makes it look like a fixture rather than a fluke.

And it reinforces something buyers already respond to on showings: the lifestyle case for living in Crescent Beach is easy to make and hard to replicate. The seawall walk, Blackie Spit, the boat launch, the small cluster of cafés and the ice cream line in July, the sunsets over Boundary Bay. That's not marketing language — it's what a Saturday actually looks like here.

What Buyers Should Know About Crescent Beach

Crescent Beach real estate is its own micro-market. Inventory is limited, the housing stock is a genuine mix — original beach cottages, thoughtful renovations, newer custom builds — and price per square foot behaves differently than it does a few kilometres inland. Flood construction levels, lot dimensions, and heritage character all factor into value in ways that don't apply in Grandview Heights or Morgan Creek.

Worth knowing before you shop:

• Homes rarely sit. Well-priced properties near the water move quickly, often to buyers who've been watching the area for months.

• The village premium is real. Walkability to the pier and the shops carries measurable value.

• Access keeps improving. Recent infrastructure work around Crescent Road has made getting in and out easier, which matters more than people expect.

• Ocean Park is the natural alternative. If Crescent Beach inventory is thin, neighbouring Ocean Park offers similar proximity with more selection.

If nothing on the water fits, it's worth widening the search across South Surrey homes for sale or looking at South Surrey estate and luxury properties, where ocean-view options come up more often than most buyers expect.

Thinking of Selling in Crescent Beach?

If you own here, this is useful context. National coverage doesn't set your list price — comparable sales do — but it does shape how a well-marketed waterfront property gets positioned, and who sees it. Sellers in Crescent Beach have a story to tell that almost no other neighbourhood in Metro Vancouver can match, and the right marketing puts that story in front of the buyers willing to pay for it.

Curious what your home is worth in today's market? Start with a free home evaluation, or get in touch to talk through buying or selling in Crescent Beach, Ocean Park, or anywhere in South Surrey.

Jared Gibbons PREC | Royal LePage Little Oak Realty
604.928.1361

Big news out of city hall this week — and it's happening right here in South Surrey.

Surrey council just gave the green light to move forward on a long-term lease of 36 acres of city-owned land in Campbell Heights to Prologis, one of the world's biggest names in logistics real estate. We're talking about a company whose customers include Amazon, Lululemon, Walmart, Home Depot, and Coca-Cola.

The headline number? The deal is projected to generate more than $1 billion in lease and property tax revenue over its 62-year term.

THE QUICK FACTS

- 36 acres of city-owned land in Campbell Heights, South Surrey

- Roughly 721,000 sq ft of proposed industrial space — logistics, warehousing, distribution, and office

- Expected to roughly double the city's annual revenue from the property

- Hundreds of local jobs projected

- The city keeps ownership of the land the entire time — a smart long-term play

WHY THIS MATTERS IF YOU OWN (OR WANT TO OWN) IN SOUTH SURREY

I've been selling real estate in South Surrey and White Rock for years, and here's the pattern I see over and over: jobs drive housing demand.

When a global company like Prologis commits to a 62-year deal, it's not a gamble — it's a vote of confidence. They've done the math on Surrey's location, transportation links, and growth trajectory, and they like what they see. They're joining names like Beedie and Toyota, who've already invested heavily in Campbell Heights.

Hundreds of new jobs means hundreds of workers, managers, and their families looking for homes nearby. Grandview Heights, Morgan Creek, Sunnyside, Rosemary Heights — these neighbourhoods are all a short drive from Campbell Heights. That's sustained demand pressure in a market that already doesn't have enough supply.

WHAT BUYERS SHOULD TAKE FROM THIS

If you've been sitting on the fence about buying in South Surrey, this is the kind of long-term signal worth paying attention to. Employment centres like Campbell Heights don't just appear overnight — and once they're established, the surrounding residential areas tend to benefit for decades. Buying near a growing job hub has historically been one of the more reliable plays in Fraser Valley real estate.

WHAT SELLERS SHOULD TAKE FROM THIS

News like this strengthens the story behind your home. When I market a South Surrey property, I'm not just selling square footage — I'm selling the area's future. A billion-dollar commitment from a global company is exactly the kind of proof point that helps buyers get comfortable making a strong offer.

THE BOTTOM LINE

South Surrey keeps showing up on the radar of serious, global money — and that's no accident. Strong transportation connections, one of Metro Vancouver's last big industrial growth areas, and a city that's actively courting investment.

If you're thinking about buying or selling in South Surrey, White Rock, or anywhere in the Fraser Valley, let's talk about how moves like this fit into your plans.

Jared Gibbons | Royal LePage Little Oak Realty
604-928-1361 | jaredgibbons@royallepage.ca

Remember 2021? Buyers were writing heartfelt letters to sellers — "we can picture our kids growing up in your backyard" — hoping an emotional edge would win a 15-offer bidding war. This week, national real estate press confirmed what I've been telling my buyers for over a year: the buyer love letter is dead. In a soft market, sellers care about one thing — the strength of your offer.

Good news if you're buying in South Surrey, White Rock or Langley: you don't need to write poetry anymore. You need a strategy. Here's what the numbers say and how to use them.

THE FRASER VALLEY IS A BUYER'S MARKET — HERE'S THE PROOF

The June FVREB numbers tell the story:

- Sales-to-active listings ratio: 11%. Anything under 12% is officially buyer's market territory. We've been here for months.

- Over 10,300 active listings across the Fraser Valley. That's real selection — buyers haven't had this much choice in years.

- 1,147 sales in June — up slightly from May, but still below last year. Sellers are competing for a small pool of active buyers. You're the scarce resource now.

- Benchmark prices are 26% below the 2022 peak and still edging down. The composite benchmark sits at $884,800, down 7.1% year over year.

- Days on market: 37 for detached, 33 for townhomes, 38 for condos. In 2021, well-priced homes sold in under a week. Today, sellers wait — and waiting sellers negotiate.

Locally in South Surrey/White Rock, the detached benchmark is $1,696,300 — down 7.6% from last year. Townhomes are at $853,400 (down 8.9%) and condos at $560,800 (down 4.6%). If you've been priced out of this area before, run the numbers again.

WHY THE LOVE LETTER STOPPED WORKING

Letters only ever mattered as a tiebreaker between nearly identical offers in a bidding war. With an 11% sales-to-active ratio, most listings aren't getting multiple offers — they're getting one, or none. There's no tie to break. Vancouver-area agents quoted in this week's coverage said it plainly: sellers are focused on bottom-line price, and a solid offer beats a heartfelt note every time.

One more thing most people don't know: buyer letters were always legally risky. When a letter reveals personal details — family status, religion, ethnicity — and a seller picks (or passes on) an offer partly because of it, that can create exposure under the BC Human Rights Code. It's part of why I rarely recommended them even at the peak. Protecting my clients means keeping decisions about price and terms, where they belong.

THE 2026 BUYER PLAYBOOK — WHAT ACTUALLY WINS

1. Negotiate on price — with data, not hope. When a listing has sat for 40+ days, I pull the comparable sales and the seller's original purchase price before we write. An offer backed by comps is a negotiation; a lowball with no logic is just noise that gets ignored.

2. Target stale listings and price reductions. Homes that have been re-listed or reduced signal a motivated seller. These are where the best deals in South Surrey and Langley are getting done right now.

3. Keep your conditions — and use them. Subject to inspection, subject to financing, even subject to sale of your current home are back on the table. In 2021 you had to waive everything; in 2026, sellers accept conditional offers because they can't afford to lose you. And a thorough inspection is a legitimate second negotiation.

4. Use your deposit and dates as leverage. A larger deposit delivered within 24 hours and flexible possession dates tell a seller you're serious — and they cost you nothing compared to overpaying on price.

5. Get pre-approved and lock your rate before you shop. In a buyer's market, speed and certainty are your negotiating chips. A seller staring at 40 days on market will take a clean, financed, ready-to-move buyer over a maybe every time.

6. Don't wait for the "bottom." Nobody rings a bell at the bottom of the market. What you can measure is today: 26% off peak prices, huge selection, and sellers who negotiate. When the ratio climbs back over 12%, this leverage disappears.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The market has handed Fraser Valley buyers the best negotiating position in years — but leverage only works if you know how to use it. If you're thinking about buying in South Surrey, White Rock or Langley, let's talk strategy before you start touring. Check out my full buyer guide, or reach out directly — 604-928-1361 or jaredgibbons@royallepage.ca.