What Your Budget Buys | $1M
What $1 million buys you
The $900,000 to $1.1M band is the most consequential price range in this market, and not because of what the homes look like. It is where the newly built home tax exemption ends.
The short answer
204 active newly built ground-oriented homes list between $900,000 and $1.1M, about 14.2% of the market. The median is $999,950 for 1,506 sq ft at $661 per square foot. 204 of them sit at or below the $1,100,000 newly built home threshold, where property transfer tax drops to zero.
- Active listings
- 204
- Median size
- 1,506 sq ft
- Median per sq ft
- $661
- Tax-exempt
- 204 of 204
Newly built homes listed between $900,000 and $1.1M
204 active listings
- Median list price
- $999,950
- Median price per sq ft
- $661
- Median size
- 1,506 sq ft
- Median strata fee
- $344
- Median annual property tax
- $3,088
typical range $938,570 to $1,099,000
typical range $461 to $973
typical range 1,082 sq ft to 2,251 sq ft
typical range $227 to $535
137 of 204 listings state one
typical range $1,720 to $4,248
68 of 204 listings state one
Measured across 204 active listings on .
The $1.1 million cliff
British Columbia gives a full property transfer tax exemption on a newly built home up to $1,100,000. Between there and $1,150,000 the exemption shrinks in proportion. Above that it is gone.
On a $1,000,000 purchase the tax you avoid is $18,000. That is not a rounding error, and it is a genuine reason to look hard at the top of your range. A home at $1,090,000 and a home at $1,160,000 are $70,000 apart on the listing and $21,200 further apart once the tax lands.
The exemption requires you to move in within 92 days of registration, keep it as your principal residence for the first year, and buy a parcel of 0.5 hectares or less. It is for people moving in, not for an investment purchase.
What you pay on a $1,000,000 newly built home
| List price | $1,000,000 |
|---|---|
| GST at 5% Normally added on top. A rebate may reduce it on qualifying purchases. | $50,000 |
| Property transfer tax before exemption 1% of the first $200,000, then 2% of the rest. | $18,000 |
| Newly built home exemption Full exemption applies at or below $1,100,000. | -$18,000 |
| Total before legal fees and adjustments | $1,050,000 |
Legal fees, title insurance, and closing adjustments are extra and are not shown here. Rebate eligibility depends on your circumstances, so confirm it with the Canada Revenue Agency or your lawyer before relying on it.
What is actually in this band
Where these homes are
- Surrey 34 (17%)
- Langley 29 (14%)
- Vancouver 28 (14%)
- Coquitlam 26 (13%)
- Abbotsford 21 (10%)
- Richmond 18 (9%)
- Mission 12 (6%)
- Pemberton 8 (4%)
A further 28 listings sit in 10 other cities.
The neighbourhoods with the most of them
- Willoughby Heights, Langley 25
- Abbotsford East, Abbotsford 18
- Coquitlam West, Coquitlam 13
- Hamilton, Richmond 13
- Grandview Heights, Surrey 12
- Mission, Mission 11
- Burke Mountain, Coquitlam 9
- Pemberton, Pemberton 8
Areas with three or more listings in this band.
How many bedrooms your money gets
- 2 bedrooms 16 (8%)
- 3 bedrooms 121 (59%)
- 4 bedrooms 50 (25%)
- 5 bedrooms 6 (3%)
- 6 bedrooms 11 (5%)
Median size
1,506 sq ft
Median per sq ft
$661
Median list price
$999,950
Type
145 townhouses, 48 half duplexes , 11 row houses
Ownership
161 strata, 42 freehold with no strata , 1 not stated
Where $1 million reaches
Surrey, Langley, Coquitlam, Richmond, and the Fraser Valley carry this band. Click a pin for the photo and a Street View link before you rule an area in or out.
196 of 204 homes plotted. 8 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 listed between $900,000 and $1.1M
$909,00030 17155 79A AVENUE
Fleetwood Tynehead · 4 bed · 1,517 sq ft
$909,9005 16765 25 AVENUE
Grandview Heights · 3 bed · 1,466 sq ft
$909,90028 17155 79A AVENUE
Fleetwood Tynehead · 4 bed · 1,517 sq ft
$909,90022 7918 204B STREET
Willoughby Heights · 4 bed · 1,432 sq ft
$909,900
Freehold
2950 SERENDIPITY STREET
Abbotsford East · 4 bed · 2,349 sq ft
$909,90041 7574 207 STREET
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,403 sq ft
$909,9006 22348 48 AVENUE
Murrayville · 3 bed · 1,617 sq ft
$915,000
Freehold
32539 HIGGINBOTTOM COURT
Mission · 4 bed · 2,687 sq ft
$919,900306 595 KEMSLEY AVENUE
Coquitlam West · 3 bed · 1,237 sq ft
$919,900
Freehold
2958 SERENDIPITY STREET
Abbotsford East · 4 bed · 2,349 sq ft
$919,90046 7918 204B STREET
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,425 sq ft
$919,9001 8745 ASHWELL ROAD
Lower Landing · 5 bed · 2,480 sq ft
$919,9006 6983 204 STREET
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,757 sq ft
$923,80020 4337 BOUNDARY ROAD
Hamilton · 3 bed · 1,250 sq ft
$928,000101 1833 165A STREET
Grandview Heights · 4 bed · 1,507 sq ft
$929,90075 7574 207 STREET
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,421 sq ft
$929,90039 20335 70A AVENUE
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,685 sq ft
$929,90010 388 DUNCAN STREET
Queensborough · 3 bed · 1,284 sq ft
$929,90022 10640 248 STREET
Thornhill MR · 4 bed · 2,216 sq ft
$933,00047 4337 BOUNDARY ROAD
Hamilton · 3 bed · 1,263 sq ft
$938,0001 3581 HAIDA DRIVE
Renfrew Heights · 3 bed · 1,153 sq ft
$939,90062 20763 76 AVENUE
Willoughby Heights · 3 bed · 1,702 sq ft
$939,900105 19577 65B AVENUE
Clayton · 3 bed · 1,726 sq ft
$940,0006166 GRANVILLE STREET
South Granville · 2 bed · 982 sq ft
180 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
What does $1 million buy in Metro Vancouver?
A newly built townhouse or half duplex of 1,506 sq ft at the median, in Surrey, Langley, Coquitlam, Richmond, or the Fraser Valley. In Vancouver itself, $1 million buys little new ground-oriented housing, because the median there sits far above this band.
Why does $1.1 million matter so much as a threshold?
Because the newly built home property transfer tax exemption is full up to $1,100,000 and disappears entirely at $1,150,000. On a $1,000,000 purchase that exemption is worth $18,000. Crossing the threshold by $60,000 can cost you the whole amount.
What is the minimum down payment on a $1 million home?
$75,000, which is 5% of the first $500,000 plus 10% of the next $500,000. Mortgage default insurance still applies below 20% down, and it remains available because the price is under the $1.5 million cap.
How much is GST on a $1 million new home?
$50,000 at 5%, added on top of the list price unless the contract says otherwise. Most listings in this set state that GST is not included. The GST new housing rebate can reduce it on qualifying purchases, so confirm your eligibility before you budget the full amount.
Is a $1 million new townhouse better value than an older detached house?
They are different products and the data here cannot compare them, because this feed covers only newly built ground-oriented homes. What it can tell you is that at this price a new home comes with current code, a warranty framework, and no deferred repairs, which an older house at the same price will not.
How many homes are actually listed between $900,000 and $1.1 million?
204 active newly built ground-oriented homes list in this band, which is 14.2% of the whole market this hub covers. The median among them is $999,950 for 1,506 sq ft of finished floor area, at $661 per square foot. That median falls close to the middle of the $900,000 to $1.1 million range this page tracks.
What happens if a home is priced just above $1.1 million?
Above $1,150,000 the newly built home property transfer tax exemption is gone entirely, so the full tax applies. Between the full exemption ceiling and that upper limit the exemption shrinks in proportion, meaning a home priced only a little higher can cost thousands more once tax is added. That is why the exact list price at the top of this band matters more than it looks like it should.
How many homes in this price band qualify for the full tax exemption?
204 of the 204 active listings in this band sit at or below the $1,100,000 newly built home threshold, where property transfer tax drops to zero. The rest fall in the partial exemption range up to $1,150,000, where the exemption shrinks but does not disappear completely.
Where these figures come from
- VanPlex active listings, MLS® data
Active townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses built in the last two years across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
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- Government of BC, newly built home PTT exemption
Full exemption at $1,100,000 or less, partial to $1,150,000. Effective 1 April 2024.
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- Government of BC, property transfer tax rates
1% to $200,000, 2% to $2M, 3% above $2M, plus a further 2% on residential value above $3M.
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- Canada Revenue Agency, GST/HST new housing rebate
GST applies to new homes. The rebate reduces it on qualifying purchases.
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- CMHC, mortgage loan insurance for consumers
Insurance is unavailable at a purchase price of $1.5M or more, where 20% down is required.
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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.