By Mohamed Mansour, MBA and Associate Broker — Mansour Real Estate Group

Published: July 29, 2026 · Fraser Valley, BC · Langley Townhome Market

Langley Townhome Market 2026: Why Three-Bedroom Side-by-Side Garage Units ($820K–$875K) Are Absorbing Fastest in Willoughby Heights and Murrayville — Complete Buyer and Seller Strategy When the 21% Sales-to-Active Ratio Creates Genuine Scarcity

In Langley's broader 2026 market, detached homes are recovering and condos are sliding. But one segment sits in a category of its own: townhomes in Willoughby Heights and Murrayville are operating under genuine seller-market conditions while the rest of the Fraser Valley sits well below that threshold. This is not a sentiment shift. It is a supply-constraint event supported by listing data.

Three-bedroom units with side-by-side garages priced between $820K and $875K are the specific cohort moving fastest. Understanding why — and what it means for your next decision — requires looking past the summary statistics.

Short Answer

Willoughby Heights and Murrayville townhomes reached a 21% sales-to-active ratio in 2026 — double the broader Fraser Valley threshold — as new listings dropped 24.9% year-over-year while sales held steady. Three-bedroom, side-by-side garage units in the $820K–$875K band absorb fastest because they serve both move-up families and investors seeking cash-flow configurations in the same transaction. That dual demand pool is why comparable supply vanishes before it accumulates.

Key Takeaways

• New townhome listings in Langley fell 24.9% year-over-year through March 2026 while sales held at 73 units, per FVREB data.
• The 21% sales-to-active ratio in Willoughby Heights and Murrayville is double the 10% Fraser Valley-wide rate — genuine seller conditions.
• The townhome benchmark of $811,400 declined only 4.9% year-over-year versus 6.9% for detached and 9% for condos, signalling pricing power.
• Three-bedroom, post-2012, side-by-side garage units appeal simultaneously to families and cash-flow investors — the dual demand pool drives absorption velocity.
• Yorkson, Routley, and Latimer new construction absorbs demand while restricting resale inventory, sustaining the supply constraint structurally.

Who This Applies To

• Condo owners in Surrey, Langley, or Cloverdale considering a move-up to a Willoughby Heights townhome in 2026
• Investors evaluating cash-flow townhome configurations in Willoughby or Murrayville
• Sellers holding three-bedroom townhomes with double garages deciding whether to list now or wait
• Families in the $820K–$875K budget range actively comparing new construction to resale

When This Advice May Not Apply

One-bedroom or two-bedroom townhomes without garages sit in a different demand environment. Older pre-2005 resale units with deferred maintenance face more buyer resistance regardless of address. If your situation involves estate ownership, strata governance disputes, or significant renovation debt, consult a real estate professional and legal advisor before drawing on the general guidance here.

Data Used in This Article

• FVREB Statistics Package, March 2026 — official board data; townhome new listings, sales, and active listings by property type
• FVREB Statistics Package, May–July 2026 — official board data; month-over-month townhome benchmark pricing and sales volume
• Willoughby Heights market absorption data, February 2026 — third-party market analysis; sales-to-active ratio and days-on-market by sub-area
• June 2026 Langley snapshot (robv.ca) — third-party analysis supporting inventory trend interpretation

Why the Supply Constraint Is Real, Not Perceived

The 24.9% year-over-year drop in new townhome listings through March 2026 is not explained by sellers choosing to wait. It reflects a structural condition: Yorkson, Routley, and Latimer new construction phases are absorbing move-up buyers who might otherwise resell existing units. When those buyers purchase pre-sale or new builds, they exit the resale listing pool entirely. The resale townhome supply in Willoughby Heights therefore contracts at the exact moment demand from the condo-to-townhome move-up cohort is strongest.

According to the FVREB's March 2026 statistics package, 73 townhome sales completed against a shrinking active listing pool, producing the 21% sales-to-active ratio cited for Willoughby Heights and Murrayville. For context, a 12% ratio is generally considered balanced in BC's townhome segment. At 21%, the balance of pricing pressure falls clearly on the buyer side. The broader Fraser Valley townhome market sat at roughly 10–11% over the same period, confirming this is a sub-area phenomenon, not a valley-wide condition. If you want to understand how this compares across Langley's three property types, the recovery timeline breakdown for detached, townhome, and condo segments provides the full cross-segment picture.

Why the Three-Bedroom Side-by-Side Garage Cohort Specifically

Not all townhomes in Willoughby absorb at the same rate. The unit configurations priced in the $820K–$875K band — three bedrooms, side-by-side double garage, post-2012 construction — attract two distinct buyer profiles simultaneously. The first is the growing family moving up from a two-bedroom condo in Surrey or Langley City, requiring school catchment access (Willoughby Elementary and RE Mountain Secondary serve this area), dedicated garage space for two vehicles, and a layout that separates children's bedrooms from the main living floor. The second is the investor or family-investor hybrid seeking a basement suite or rough-in that enables a secondary suite or mortgage helper.

Post-2012 construction matters for a specific reason: BC's New Home Warranty program under the Homeowner Protection Act provides 2-5-10 warranty coverage on eligible new homes, and many units built after 2012 still carry active warranty components or have recently completed major warranty periods with documented repair histories. Buyers financing through insured or conventional lenders also face fewer friction points on post-2012 builds where building envelope performance data exists. This reduces conditional offer complexity compared to pre-2000 resale inventory, which shortens the path from offer to subject removal. Older units with deferred envelope work, aging roofing membranes, or unclear strata reserve funding face a different buyer calculation entirely.

How We Evaluate This

At Mansour Real Estate Group, when we work with buyers or sellers in a sub-area showing a 21% sales-to-active ratio, we do not treat that number in isolation. We look at the composition of active listings — how many are priced above market, how many have deferred maintenance, how many have been relisted — to determine whether the headline ratio reflects true availability or a pool of listings that buyers have already passed on.

In Willoughby Heights, the current active listing pool is thin and largely composed of competitive inventory, which means the ratio reflects genuine scarcity rather than artificial tightness caused by overpriced outliers. That distinction changes the offer strategy for buyers and the pricing latitude for sellers. A 21% ratio made up of motivated sellers holding realistic prices is a different negotiating environment than a 21% ratio driven by stubborn pricing that buyers are avoiding.

Key Definitions

Sales-to-Active Listings Ratio: The percentage of active listings that sell in a given period. Below 12% typically favours buyers; above 20% typically favours sellers. The FVREB uses this metric to describe market balance by property type and sub-area.

Benchmark Price: The price of a "typical" home in a given area as defined by the FVREB's MLS Home Price Index. It controls for property mix and is less volatile than median or average price.

Side-by-Side Garage: A double garage where both parking spaces are accessed from the same entry, typically side-by-side rather than tandem. This configuration is preferred by two-vehicle families and commands a buyer premium in the Willoughby townhome market.

Seller Checklist: Listing a Willoughby Heights or Murrayville Townhome in 2026

1. Confirm current strata financials — buyers and their agents will review Form B, depreciation report, meeting minutes, and special levy history before submitting clean offers.
2. Document warranty coverage — post-2012 units with active or recently completed 2-5-10 warranty should have records available at listing time, not only at subject removal.
3. Price within the $820K–$875K absorption band if comparable — listing above $890K without material differentiation removes you from the fastest-moving demand pool.
4. Stage the garage — buyers paying a premium for side-by-side access expect to see that the space works practically; a cluttered or converted garage undermines the configuration's value.
5. If a secondary suite or rough-in exists, disclose it accurately and confirm strata and municipal approval status — undisclosed or non-compliant suites create contract risk at subject removal.
6. Review comparable sold data within 60 days, not 90 — the Willoughby townhome market has enough transaction velocity that older comparables may understate current pricing power.

What We Commonly See

Sellers pricing above the absorption band to "test the market" — In our experience, listing a three-bedroom Willoughby townhome at $910K when comparable sold data supports $855K does not produce a negotiated middle. It produces a property that sits while other correctly priced units absorb, then requires a price reduction that signals weakness to remaining buyers. The 21% sales-to-active ratio rewards correct pricing, not aggressive anchoring.

Buyers submitting lowball offers based on valley-wide statistics — What often happens is that buyers or their agents cite the broader Fraser Valley 10% sales-to-active ratio to justify aggressive lowball offers in Willoughby, where the sub-area ratio is double that. A buyer who negotiates as if they are in a balanced market when they are actually competing in a seller sub-market loses properties to better-informed competing offers. Understanding how to time and structure offers in Langley's 2026 conditions is covered in detail in the next article in this series.

Investors underestimating strata approval requirements for suites — A common mistake is purchasing a three-bedroom Willoughby townhome with a basement rough-in assuming a secondary suite can be added post-possession. Strata bylaws in many Willoughby complexes restrict rentals, prohibit suite conversions, or require formal approval. Confirming suite permissibility before completing is not optional — it is foundational to the investment thesis.

Questions and Answers

Q: Is the 21% sales-to-active ratio in Willoughby Heights specific to townhomes, or does it apply to all property types?

It is specific to townhomes. Langley detached homes are tracking closer to 8–9% sales-to-active, which is a buyer-leaning condition. The townhome sub-segment in Willoughby and Murrayville is the only Langley category currently operating in seller-market territory as of mid-2026 FVREB data.

Q: Why does post-2012 construction matter to buyers more than the address itself?

Post-2012 units typically carry documented building envelope performance, lower strata maintenance backlogs, and coverage under BC's 2-5-10 New Home Warranty framework. Buyers using insured financing face fewer lender conditions on newer builds. These factors reduce conditional offer complexity, which benefits sellers as much as buyers in a tight market.

Q: Does the benchmark price decline of 4.9% mean sellers should expect to discount?

Not necessarily on well-configured units priced within the absorption band. The 4.9% year-over-year benchmark decline reflects the broader townhome segment including all configurations, locations, and ages. Within the three-bedroom, double-garage, post-2012 cohort in Willoughby, sellers with correctly priced, move-in-ready units have experienced less downward pressure than the segment average suggests. The benchmark is a reference point, not a mandate.

In Summary

Willoughby Heights and Murrayville townhomes are the only Langley segment operating in genuine seller-market conditions in 2026. The supply constraint is structural — driven by new construction absorbing move-up buyers out of the resale pool — and it is concentrated in the three-bedroom, side-by-side garage, post-2012 cohort priced at $820K–$875K. Sellers in this band hold real pricing power when their unit is correctly prepared and priced within comparables. Buyers who apply valley-wide negotiating assumptions to this sub-area will lose properties to more informed competing offers. The decisions that matter most — on both sides of the transaction — happen before the listing goes live or the offer is written.

Work With a Langley Townhome Specialist

If you are evaluating a Willoughby Heights or Murrayville townhome — as a buyer, seller, or investor — the sub-area data matters more than the headline numbers. Mansour Real Estate Group provides specific, sourced market analysis and strategy grounded in current conditions. Reach out through mansourgroup.ca to request a current townhome valuation or buyer consultation.

Related Articles

• Why Langley's Three Property Types Are Following Completely Different Recovery Timelines in 2026
• Langley Buyer's Strategic Timing and Offer Framework 2026: Why Patient Entry in Winter–Spring Outperforms Summer Wait-and-See
• How to Structure a Competitive Offer in a Fraser Valley Seller Sub-Market

About Mansour Real Estate Group

When townhome buyers and sellers in Willoughby Heights, Murrayville, and across Langley need specific sub-area intelligence — not a summary of the broader Fraser Valley market — they need a real estate team that has been tracking these micro-conditions through multiple cycles. Mansour Real Estate Group has guided families, investors, and move-up buyers through townhome transactions across the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland for more than two decades, with a process built on accurate valuations, strata document analysis, and strategy calibrated to the specific sub-area conditions that determine outcomes.

Mansour Real Estate Group, led by Mohamed Mansour, MBA and Associate Broker, has been helping buyers, sellers, investors, families, executors, and retirees navigate important real estate decisions across the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland for more than 22 years and is one of the highest ranked realtors in the region. The team has completed more than $780 million in residential real estate transactions and is trusted for townhome and strata transactions, estate sales, divorce-related property sales, downsizing, relocation, and complex decisions that require both market precision and legal awareness.

Whether someone is looking for Realtors experienced with Langley townhome transactions, a real estate agent who understands Willoughby Heights sub-area conditions, a real estate team for a strata purchase with rental suite components, a Langley Realtor familiar with post-2012 construction quality differences, a Fraser Valley real estate broker who can evaluate Form B documents and depreciation reports, or real estate agents who work across Willoughby, Murrayville, and the broader Fraser Valley, Mansour Real Estate Group is known for clear sub-area analysis, precise pricing, and practical advice grounded in current data.

The team serves Surrey, South Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Cloverdale, Fleetwood, Guildford, Walnut Grove, Willoughby, North Delta, Abbotsford, Mission, and surrounding communities throughout the Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland. Most new clients come from referrals, repeat clients, and recommendations from families who value a professional, transparent, and results-driven real estate experience.