Why Langley is a Great Place to Live

This week, we sat down with ENM’s co-founder, Daniel Greenhalgh, to discuss the benefits of renting in Langley.

I think what Langley has done well is focus on micro-communities, like the one in Willoughby where we’re currently building. Each of these has its own distinct feel. They’re organized around shopping centers and entertainment districts that all “collect” around the center of the community. Places like Walnut Grove, Murrayville, North Gordon, have a real sense of identity and people can easily become a part of the community. Unlike the sprawl of other cities like Surrey, Abbotsford and Richmond, Langley has created walking communities. I live here in Langley, and every morning it’s a parade of parents walking their kids to school. That’s great to see and it’s hard to find elsewhere. I think Langley’s done a great job of making these types of communities happen.

Langley’s done well with traffic calming policies. It’s very sophisticated compared to other places. The roads here are as wide as other roads, but they feel smaller, because of the little “neck-downs” here and there which make people drive slower. They’ve also created a path system, which our project at Willoughby Walk will connect to. It’s a long, meandering sidewalk that makes it possible to walk or bike all the way from City Hall to Walnut Grove. It’s great to have the option to not use your car all the time. It’s attractive, it’s safe and it’s a very pleasant way to get around. And there are plans to expand it even further.
 

It’s easy to get in and out of the city since communities like Willoughby and Walnut Grove are right off the freeway and most of Langley is within a few minutes of it. Commuting to Vancouver is less than an hour on most days and on good days, you can make it in 30 minutes. The vast majority of people who live in Langley work elsewhere, so having that access is important.

Well, aside from the obvious price differences, I do think it’s a much better quality of life. Langley’s a great place to raise a family - the schools are great, the neighborhoods really celebrate creating a sense of community through street fairs, block parties, and family events. It has a real identity. Right now, the knock on Vancouver is that it’s rapidly losing that sense of community and identity in the individual neighborhoods, just because everyone’s being priced out. When houses are sold in the desirable neighborhoods, they’re most likely being bought by someone who doesn’t make their income in the province. There are lots of empty homes as we all know, in Vancouver and Burnaby, and you’re just not going to find empty homes in Langley. People live here, and they make it their home.

I do, because Langley is less vulnerable to the big market shifts that so often occur. And with the new NDP government, the market is a lot more volatile than it’s been in a long time. This government is willing to watch the real estate bubble burst, and in some ways, they want to help bring housing prices down, or at least mitigate demand through heavy taxation. This makes places like Langley much more attractive to rent or buy.