Living and working in Surrey. (real estate, apartment, rent)

[Geezerrunner]

My son has interviewed for and is hoping to be hired for a position in Surrey BC.

If hired he would be moving from Toronto in a month or two, and looking for a place to live with convenient transit access to the city centre, where the job is located. His girlfriend would be moving with him, and registering at either UBC or Simon Fraser to study for a master's degree.

They currently live in Toronto, and pay $1300 per month in rent for a one bedroom apartment, but would like to buy either a townhouse or possibly a condo (which will accept their cat) and hope to pay about $250,000 for a place with two bedrooms.

They may have to also purchase a car as they will be travelling to different locations and at different times of day for his job and her student commitments at the university.

1)Is it reasonable to expect to find suitable housing in Vancouver, Surrey, Langley or Vancouver, with access to transit by bus or LRT, within a reasonable budget?
2) Will they be able to enjoy in Surrey a variety of ethnic restaurants and interesting shops as they would in Vancouver?

Are there other issues of which they should be aware?

[Surrey Jack]

No LRT in the Lower Mainland. Plans for it to be done in Surrey and Langley in the near future. We have SkyTrain, much better (above ground). Only 4 SkyTrain stops in Surrey, all in the Whalley (last four stops on the line) with future expansion planned. None in the rest of the city and Langley.

They could purchase a brand new townhouse in Surrey/Langley for 250k easily, however all the latest developments in these two cities are happening away from the SkyTrain. Once LRT is here, some of these areas will have better, more direct transit. Currently bus service, buses are sufficient and many do use them daily but would recommend driving for overall convenience.

Surrey has a large Indo-Canadian population (most cuisines are Punjabi, less diverse than Brampton-Mississauga-Markham). Lots of Indian food to choose from. Decent Chinese, Vietnamese but best to order/dine-in somewhere in Richmond or Vancouver proper. Vancouver is a mix of all cultures, best food is clearly there besides Indian and Chinese (other Asian flavours worth visiting in Vancouver proper).

Surrey is a growing city, shops are getting up there but Vancouver proper and even Richmond have a better more diverse selection. Guildford Mall has been redeveloped, amongst the best shopping malls in the region, South Surrey is where lots of people head too as well. Shops, restaurants, beach, etc.

Would suggest Sullivan, Cloverdale, Clayton Heights, or Grandview for Surrey if going for a townhouse. Willoughby, adjacent to Clayton Heights on the Surrey/Langley border is a popular neighbourhood for young families and couples. All new developments (really just rezoned neighbourhoods, more density). Check out MLS.ca to find out the price ranges and compare the area to how far away it is from the SkyTrain stations and see if it is doable.

[Geezerrunner]

Thanks, that is really helpful!
I have spent an hour or so looking at real estate sites and found several townhouses that looked quite nice, so this seems pretty positive.