More Vancouver businesses are apparently moving to Surrey and it is not just because of lower leases and higher value retail and office space, observers say.
Being closer to home is a key reason why Vancouver businesses are decamping to B.C.’s second largest city, according to Jordan McDonald, a former Vancouver commercial realtor who co-founded Frontline Real Estate in Surrey in 2010. McDonald explains that many people first move their home to Surrey, and then their business.
It is the “dynamic economy” of Surrey that attracted McDonald, who said many major companies are looking for satellite offices in a city that welcomes an estimated 1,000 new residents every month.
Frontline has grown from a staff of two to more than two-dozen since it opened, McDonald said. “We are able to hire top Vancouver brokers for less money because they live in the Fraser Valley and don’t want to commute to downtown [Vancouver] anymore,” he said.
While less traffic congestion is often cited as a key reason, Surrey’s overall lower cost for doing business is likely a major lure for businesses. For instance, the city’s business tax rate, at $15.90 for each $1,000 of assessed value, is the lowest of any Metro Vancouver municipality (it is $17.70 in Vancouver.) And, while net commercial lease rates are similar to secondary Vancouver locations, Surrey space is often newer and demands less in taxes and operating costs, McDonald explained.
The number of businesses moving from Vancouver to Surrey is hard to nail down, but Surrey registered 2,334 new business licenses last year, up 8.1% from 2010. In the first seven months of this year, 1,324 new businesses opened.
