New Westminster

New Westminster

New West sits right in the middle of Metro Vancouver, bordered by Burnaby, Coquitlam, Surrey, and the Fraser River. It does not look or feel like a typical sprawling suburb. It is tiny—only 15.62 square kilometers—but it packs in nearly 79,000 people. Because the land is so tight, the city had to build up instead of out. What you get is a compact, historic downtown, an active working riverfront, and a very dense footprint.

For a small city, the transit infrastructure is massive. New West has five SkyTrain stations on the Expo line, making it a major hub for commuters. This heavy transit access shapes the entire local housing market. While you can find heritage homes in areas like Queen’s Park, most of the housing stock is multi-family. Apartments under five storeys make up about 34.8% of the homes, and the riverfront is dominated by high-density condos and renters. It is a natural choice for buyers who want an urban, walkable lifestyle but are priced out of Vancouver.

The local economy is anchored by major institutional employers. Healthcare is the top industry here, employing over 12% of the workforce, driven largely by the Royal Columbian Hospital. Professional, scientific, and technical services follow closely at nearly 11%. Douglas College also brings thousands of students downtown every day. The city’s employment rate sits at 64.0%. Because the city cannot expand outward, any new residential growth comes from infill projects and high-density builds near the transit stations. It is a fast-moving, conventional market with steady demand from first-time buyers and investors.

And that urban, highly connected profile is exactly why Tekamar does not lend here.

We are a regional mortgage investment corporation. We operate strictly outside of Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, focusing our capital on the smaller towns, secondary markets, and rural areas that conventional lenders ignore. New West is a strong, stable real estate market, but it is built for big banks and city-focused private capital.

Since New West falls completely outside our territory, our maximum LTV here is 0%. If you have a borrower who needs an equity loan, a second mortgage, or bridge financing on a condo or heritage home here, you will need to place it with a Lower Mainland MIC. We know how the market works, but we leave it to the city lenders. Save Tekamar for your deals in the towns without stoplights.