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Buying a New Build Home in Surrey and Langley: Warranty, Taxes and Contracts

A new home comes with protections a resale home does not, and a few traps of its own. This guide walks through the warranty, the walkthrough, the taxes and the contract before you sign for a new build in Surrey, Langley or anywhere in BC.

By Shawn Kandola, PREC · Published November 5, 2026 · 8 min read

Where new homes are being built in Surrey and Langley

In South Surrey, the City's Grandview Heights plan covers about 1,050 hectares between 16 Avenue and 28 Avenue and is being built out neighbourhood by neighbourhood, with the last piece, Area 5, entering planning in July 2026. Our South Surrey vs White Rock comparison covers taxes, schools and prices on the peninsula.

For projects selling before completion, browse presale homes in Willoughby or new condos and townhomes in Surrey City Centre. The rules below apply across BC.

Step 1: Look the home up on the New Homes Registry

BC's Homeowner Protection Act requires new homes to be built by a Licensed Residential Builder and covered by home warranty insurance, unless the Act or its regulations exempt them. The rule applies to homes with building permits applied for on or after July 1, 1999, and BC Housing's Licensing and Consumer Services branch administers it.

Before you write an offer, search the address on BC Housing's New Homes Registry. It shows whether the home has a home warranty insurance policy, whether a licensed residential builder built it, or whether it was built without warranty under an exemption such as an Owner Builder Authorization. It also lists the builder's warranty number and the warranty provider's name. Homes registered with BC Housing on or after November 19, 2007 can be searched online; for older registrations you contact BC Housing directly.

What 2-5-10 home warranty insurance covers

For a detached home, the most you can claim is the lesser of the first owner's purchase price or $200,000. On a speculative detached home, coverage starts at first occupancy or transfer of title, whichever comes first, and it stays with the house, so a buyer of a 3 year old home still has the rest of the envelope and structure coverage.

Insurers may exclude landscaping, site grading and surface drainage, normal wear and tear, damage caused by others or by natural events, and labour or materials supplied by the owner. These are minimums and some policies give more, so ask for the policy itself and read it.

Owner-built homes: read the disclosure notice

Some new houses are built by their owners under an Owner Builder Authorization instead of by a licensed builder, and these homes are exempt from warranty insurance. The owner builder must live in the home for at least 1 year after occupancy before selling, unless BC Housing grants permission for undue hardship, and must give any buyer an Owner Builder Disclosure Notice before a contract is signed during the first 10 years. Later owners who sell within those 10 years must provide it too.

The owner builder stays liable to later buyers for defects on the same 2, 5 and 10 year pattern, but no insurer stands behind that promise, and BC Housing notes that litigation may be the only remedy. Reflect that in your inspection and your offer.

The walkthrough and the deficiency list

Before closing you do a pre-delivery inspection, or PDI, with the builder, and record anything damaged, incomplete, missing or not working. BC Housing's construction performance guide says warranty providers generally rely on what was recorded on the PDI form to decide whether to cover surface damage to things like flooring, counters and plumbing fixtures, because damage that may have happened after move-in will probably not be treated as a defect.

• Bring a list and a camera, and test every tap, appliance, window and door.
• Look closely at floors, counters, tubs and fixtures for chips and scratches, and get each one written on the PDI form.
• Consider a licensed home inspector for a new build too; our home inspection guide explains what they check and what they cannot.

GST and the property transfer tax on a new home

A new home carries 5% GST, which most resale homes do not. First time buyers can get back the GST on a new home priced up to $1,000,000, to a maximum of $50,000, with the rebate shrinking to nothing at $1,500,000. Other buyers who will live in the home may qualify for the smaller New Housing Rebate on lower priced homes. Worked examples and how to claim are in this guide to GST on new homes in BC.

BC's newly built home exemption can remove the property transfer tax on a new home that will be your principal residence. In 2026 the full exemption applies to a fair market value of $1,100,000 or less, with a partial exemption up to $1,150,000. You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, the property must be 0.5 hectares or smaller, and you must move in within 92 days of registration and live there for the rest of the first year. This BC property transfer tax guide shows the full calculation.

Set those cut-offs against local prices. In October 2026 the detached benchmark was $1,448,100 in Langley and $1,606,500 in White Rock and South Surrey, so most new detached houses here will be priced past both breaks, while a new townhome near the townhouse benchmark of about $800,000 has a far better chance.

Presales: the disclosure statement and your 7 days

If you buy before the home is finished in a project of 5 or more lots or strata lots, BC's Real Estate Development Marketing Act applies. The developer must give you its filed disclosure statement before you sign, and you then have 7 days to cancel without penalty, counted from the later of signing the contract or acknowledging that you had a chance to read the disclosure statement. Since April 1, 2025, disclosure statements include a Summary of Pre-sale Risks and Buyer Rights form.

Read it for the estimated construction dates, the permit and financing deadlines, strata fees and parking. BCFSA lists the main risks: completion can be delayed or never happen, layouts and square footage can change, materials can be substituted, and a low appraisal at completion can leave you short on financing. The 3 business day rescission period for resale homes does not apply where this 7 day right applies.

Assignment clauses

An assignment is selling your presale contract to someone else before completion. Check 3 things in the contract: whether assignments are allowed at all, whether you need the developer's consent, and what fee the developer charges. A developer can refuse consent even when you have a willing buyer, and if the person you assign to fails to complete, you typically remain liable to the developer.

Tax applies too. BC's home flipping tax treats a presale contract as taxable property. Profit from an assignment within 365 days is taxed at 20%, falling to zero at 730 days, and there is no principal residence deduction on a presale. Developers report assignments of presale condos and other strata lots to the Condo and Strata Assignment Integrity Register, and the 7 day right to cancel does not pass to the person who takes the assignment.

A short checklist before you sign

• Search the address on the New Homes Registry and note the builder and the warranty provider.
• For an owner-built home, get the Owner Builder Disclosure Notice before you sign.
• For a presale, read the disclosure statement with a lawyer or notary inside your 7 days.
• Check the price against the GST rebate and PTT exemption cut-offs.
• Read the assignment, completion date and price adjustment clauses.
• Book the PDI, bring your list, and put the 12 month and 24 month warranty dates in your calendar.

Frequently asked questions