Port Coquitlam

Port Coquitlam

We get calls about Port Coquitlam, and it’s easy to see why. It hits a sweet spot for a lot of people: the green space and community feel of a smaller town, but still plugged directly into the Metro Vancouver machine. It’s grown steadily, adding nearly 5% to its population since 2016 to push it over 61,000 residents. With a population density of over 2,100 people per square kilometre, it’s a world away from the small-town markets we typically finance.

It’s primarily a bedroom community, where the average commute clocks in at over 30 minutes. The housing stock reflects this, with single-detached homes making up over a third of the market and another quarter being low-rise apartments. This mix is a perfect fit for the local demographic. The median age is over 40, and the workforce is mature and highly educated—more than two-thirds of residents have post-secondary credentials. These are the stable, prime borrowers every lender wants to see.

The local economy is solid and diverse. It isn’t reliant on a single industry; healthcare, construction, and retail are all major employers, which provides a steady economic floor. With a median household income of $102,000 and a moderate unemployment rate of 8.1%, the fundamentals look sound.

But this strength is exactly why Port Coquitlam falls outside our lending area. Its market moves in lockstep with Vancouver. For all intents and purposes, it is the Vancouver market. Its real estate values, liquidity, and risks are all driven by the city. Our fund was specifically structured to serve communities outside of the Greater Vancouver area and the Fraser Valley. We built our model around the unique risk profiles and property values found in places like the Okanagan, the Kootenays, and on Vancouver Island. The capital in our fund comes from investors who are comfortable with those specific markets, not the Lower Mainland.

Lending in Port Coquitlam would be a fundamental departure from our mandate. For that reason, we don’t offer financing there. It’s not a knock on the quality of the real estate or the community itself—it’s a straightforward consequence of our geographical focus. Brokers with clients here will need to use lenders who specialize in the Metro Vancouver ecosystem. Our maximum loan-to-value in Port Coquitlam is 0.0%.

If you have a deal further out—say, in Hope or beyond—we’re ready to talk. But for any property within the gravitational pull of Metro Vancouver, including Port Coquitlam, we have to pass.