| Measure | Province of BC rules, read 5 October 2026 |
|---|---|
| The rates | 1% to $200,000; 2% from $200,000 to $2,000,000; 3% above $2,000,000; a further 2% on residential value above $3,000,000. Neither the 2025 nor the 2026 provincial budget changed them |
| At Langley’s benchmarks | House $1,479,400: $27,588. Townhome $806,400: $14,128. Condo $534,000: $8,680 |
| First-time buyer | No tax on the first $500,000 at $835,000 or less, a saving of up to $8,000; the saving shrinks to nothing at $860,000 |
| Newly built home | No tax at $1,100,000 or less for a buyer who will live in it, first home or not; full tax again at $1,150,000 |
| Foreign buyer | A further 20% of the value in both Langleys, which sit inside Metro Vancouver |
| When it is paid | On registration at the Land Title Office, normally completion day, through your lawyer or notary |
Every Langley detached benchmark carries a tax of 1.8% to 2.1% of the price: $19,694 at Aldergrove’s $1,084,700, $27,588 at the Langley benchmark, $54,179 at Campbell Valley’s $2,539,300. The tax is charged on the home’s fair market value on the day the transfer registers, and the Province treats an open-market price as the best evidence of that value when the home registers within a few months of the contract. It comes due on completion day, so it belongs in the budget beside the down payment, not after it.
For most Langley buyers the rate matters less than two thresholds. A first-time buyer at $835,000 or less pays nothing on the first $500,000, a saving of $8,000; between $835,000 and $860,000 the saving shrinks by $320 for every $1,000 of price, so the tax payable climbs from $6,700 to $15,200, $340 more tax for each $1,000. A newly built home at $1.1 million or less pays no tax at all, first home or not; between $1.1 million and $1.15 million the tax payable climbs from nothing to $21,000, $420 for each $1,000.
The townhome market sits right on the first line. At the benchmark, a first-time buyer saves the full $8,000 in Aldergrove ($576,200), Langley City ($748,600), Walnut Grove ($782,800) and Willoughby ($829,300), but only $1,888 in Murrayville ($854,100), and nothing in Fort Langley ($925,400) or Salmon River ($1,022,600). A first-time buyer pays no tax at all at the Aldergrove, Salmon River and Langley City condo benchmarks, all under $500,000. For a seller whose townhome will sell between $835,000 and $860,000: a first-time buyer pays $340 of extra tax on each $1,000 above $835,000, so $850,000 costs that buyer $20,100 more than $835,000, not $15,000. Know where your price sits against the line before you set it.
| Neighbourhood | Detached benchmark | Tax at that price | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aldergrove | $1,084,700 | $19,694 | 1.82% |
| Langley City | $1,145,000 | $20,900 | 1.83% |
| Walnut Grove | $1,337,600 | $24,752 | 1.85% |
| Brookswood | $1,400,600 | $26,012 | 1.86% |
| Willoughby Heights | $1,442,200 | $26,844 | 1.86% |
| Murrayville | not published | – | – |
| Salmon River | $1,856,900 | $35,138 | 1.89% |
| Fort Langley | $2,045,200 | $39,356 | 1.92% |
| County Line Glen Valley | $2,187,400 | $43,622 | 1.99% |
| Otter District | $2,220,400 | $44,612 | 2.01% |
| Campbell Valley | $2,539,300 | $54,179 | 2.13% |
| All Langley | $1,479,400 | $27,588 | 1.86% |
A benchmark is the board’s index price for a typical house, not a sale price, and the tax on a home is charged on that home’s own price. The share rises with the price because more of the value falls in the 2% and 3% brackets: 1.82% at Aldergrove, 2.13% at Campbell Valley. The board published no Murrayville detached benchmark for August.
| Home | Benchmark | Tax | First-time buyer pays |
|---|---|---|---|
| Townhome, Aldergrove | $576,200 | $9,524 | $1,524 |
| Townhome, Langley City | $748,600 | $12,972 | $4,972 |
| Townhome, Walnut Grove | $782,800 | $13,656 | $5,656 |
| Townhome, all Langley | $806,400 | $14,128 | $6,128 |
| Townhome, Willoughby | $829,300 | $14,586 | $6,586 |
| Townhome, Murrayville | $854,100 | $15,082 | $13,194 |
| Townhome, Fort Langley | $925,400 | $16,508 | $16,508 |
| Townhome, Salmon River | $1,022,600 | $18,452 | $18,452 |
| Condo, Aldergrove | $439,600 | $6,792 | $0 |
| Condo, Salmon River | $445,800 | $6,916 | $0 |
| Condo, Langley City | $482,700 | $7,654 | $0 |
| Condo, Murrayville | $517,000 | $8,340 | $340 |
| Condo, Walnut Grove | $520,100 | $8,402 | $402 |
| Condo, all Langley | $534,000 | $8,680 | $680 |
| Condo, Willoughby | $571,300 | $9,426 | $1,426 |
| Condo, Fort Langley | $762,800 | $13,256 | $5,256 |
A first-time buyer pays nothing on the first $500,000 when the home is $835,000 or less. That is why every condo benchmark under $500,000 carries no tax for that buyer, and every benchmark between $500,000 and $835,000 carries only 2% of the part above $500,000. Murrayville is the one townhome benchmark on the slope between $835,000 and $860,000, where the saving shrinks by $320 for each $1,000; Fort Langley and Salmon River are past it.
| Price | Tax before exemption | Exemption | Tax payable |
|---|---|---|---|
| $500,000 | $8,000 | $8,000 | $0 |
| $650,000 | $11,000 | $8,000 | $3,000 |
| $800,000 | $14,000 | $8,000 | $6,000 |
| $835,000 | $14,700 | $8,000 | $6,700 |
| $840,000 | $14,800 | $6,400 | $8,400 |
| $850,000 | $15,000 | $3,200 | $11,800 |
| $855,000 | $15,100 | $1,600 | $13,500 |
| $860,000 | $15,200 | none | $15,200 |
Who qualifies: a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who has lived in BC for the year before registration, or filed two BC tax returns in the last six years, who has never owned a principal residence anywhere in the world and has never had this exemption before. The home must be your principal residence only, carry only residential buildings and sit on 0.5 hectares (1.24 acres) or less, and you must move in within 92 days of registration and live there to the first anniversary. On a larger lot only the house and a half-hectare share of the land count. If only one of two buyers qualifies, the exemption follows that buyer’s share: on an $835,000 home bought jointly, half of the $8,000, for $10,700 payable.
| Price | Tax before exemption | Exemption | Tax payable |
|---|---|---|---|
| $806,400 | $14,128 | $14,128 | $0 |
| $900,000 | $16,000 | $16,000 | $0 |
| $1,100,000 | $20,000 | $20,000 | $0 |
| $1,125,000 | $20,500 | $10,250 | $10,250 |
| $1,150,000 | $21,000 | none | $21,000 |
The newly built home exemption has no first-time test. A Canadian citizen or permanent resident buying a newly built home as a principal residence qualifies, if it is the first registration of the property with the finished home, the land is 0.5 hectares or less, and the buyer moves in within 92 days and lives there for the rest of the first year. Above $1.1 million the exemption is the tax multiplied by (1,150,000 minus the value) divided by 50,000, so it is gone at $1,150,000. Every Langley townhome benchmark is under $1.1 million, so a new townhome priced like the typical one pays no tax for a buyer who will live in it.
A presale condo or strata townhome is generally taxed on the total you paid to acquire it, including upgrades and any premium paid for an assignment, not on what it is worth when the building completes. The Province says this gives buyers certainty over the tax and over whether an exemption applies. It also means the tax does not follow the market down: in a year when the Langley condo benchmark fell 8.8%, a unit contracted at $600,000 is taxed on $600,000.
Above $2 million the rate is 3%, and the further 2% on residential value above $3 million takes the top slice to 5%. At the Campbell Valley benchmark ($2,539,300) the tax is $54,179; a fully residential $3.5 million property pays $93,000. Neither exemption reaches these prices.
A foreign national, foreign corporation or taxable trustee pays a further 20% on their share of a residential property’s value in both Langleys, which the Province lists inside Metro Vancouver. On the Langley detached benchmark that is $295,880 on top of the $27,588.
The tax is due when the transfer registers at the Land Title Office, which is normally completion day. In most sales your lawyer or notary files the return and pays the tax from your funds, and the office may refuse to register a transfer if the tax is not paid that day. The return is filed even when an exemption means nothing is owed.
$18,000 on a resale home: $2,000 on the first $200,000 and $16,000 on the next $800,000. A first-time buyer gets no exemption at that price. A newly built home at $1 million, bought by a citizen or permanent resident to live in, pays nothing.
Not on the first $500,000 if the home is $835,000 or less, a saving of up to $8,000. They pay 2% on the part above $500,000, so $6,700 at $835,000. The saving shrinks to nothing between $835,000 and $860,000.
The buyer. Whoever gains the interest registered at the Land Title Office files the return and pays the tax, normally through a lawyer or notary on completion day.
Yes, generally on the total paid to acquire it, upgrades and assignment premiums included, when the transfer registers after the building completes. A buyer who will live in it can owe nothing under the newly built exemption at $1.1 million or less.
No. It is a provincial tax at the same rates everywhere in BC. Both Langleys sit inside Metro Vancouver, so the further 20% for foreign buyers applies in both.
Fraser Valley Real Estate Board MLS® August 2026 package, released 2 September 2026; sub-area and twelve-month figures from the board’s database, read 5 September 2026. Benchmarks are the board’s index price, never an average. Analysis: Hamish Ross.
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