Craig Johnston Personal Real Estate Corporation · Brokerage: Royal LePage Elite West
Craig Johnston Personal Real Estate Corporation · Brokerage: Royal LePage Elite West
For first-time and move-up buyers mapping their 2026 budget — real numbers, current rates, honest limits.
Book a Strategy Call →Craig Johnston · REALTOR® · 604-202-6092
5.0 across 36+ Google reviews Top 1% Team — Greater Vancouver REALTORS®, 2023–2025 47+ years in the Tri-CitiesQuick Answer
How much home can you afford in Coquitlam?
Real affordability math for Coquitlam and the Tri-Cities — stress test, monthly carry, down payment, and closing buffer. Craig Johnston, Top 1% Team — Greater Vancouver REALTORS®, 2023–2025 and 47+ year Tri-Cities resident, can walk you through the local context. Free Strategy Call ends with a written one-page plan in 24 hours.
Banks approve you against the stress test — your qualifying rate plus 2 percentage points. That sets the maximum. It does not set the smart number. The smart number is the price at which your monthly carry leaves room for life: emergency savings, kids, travel, retirement contributions.
A good Coquitlam affordability conversation works three numbers in parallel: the bank's maximum, your actual comfortable carry, and your runway buffer. The answer sits somewhere inside the triangle — not at the top corner.
Your housing costs as a percentage of gross income. Most lenders want this under 39%. That includes mortgage, property tax, heat, and 50% of strata fees.
All debt obligations — housing plus car payments, student loans, credit card minimums. Lenders want this under 44%. TDS is usually the binding constraint, not GDS.
Your contract rate + 2%, or 5.25%, whichever is higher. This is the rate your qualifying math is run against, not the rate you actually pay.
5% on first $500K, 10% on the portion from $500K up to $1.5M, and 20% of the full price at $1.5M and above. Mortgage default insurance (CMHC/Sagen) is required under 20% down and isn't available at $1.5M or more.
Kids' activities, vacations, retirement contributions, meals out, car repairs. The bank's numbers assume you live in a box eating rice.
PTT, legal, adjustments, insurance, title insurance — PTT alone is about 2% of most purchase prices. Banks do not hold this back for you.
At renewal, rates can move. If you are at the top of your approval today, a 2% rate increase in 5 years can reshape your monthly.
Coquitlam property tax scales with assessment. A new build or a rapidly appreciating area can see real tax increases.
$100K–$130K combined income: Roughly $500K–$700K. Condos in Burquitlam, Coquitlam Centre, and older parts of Port Moody fit. Any number above assumes 10%+ down and no consumer debt.
$130K–$180K combined: $700K–$1.0M realistic. Townhomes enter the conversation — Westwood Plateau, Port Moody, Port Coquitlam. Condos in newer Coquitlam Centre towers work cleanly.
$180K–$250K combined: $1.0M–$1.4M. Townhomes in Burke Mountain, Westwood Plateau, Heritage Mountain. Lower-end detached in Port Coquitlam and parts of Coquitlam.
$250K+ combined: $1.4M and up. Detached in Burke Mountain, Westwood Plateau, Heritage Mountain, Port Moody.
These are first-approximation brackets, not promises. Your actual number depends on down payment, debt load, credit, and whether you are dual-income or single. See Closing Costs Guide for what sits on top of purchase price.
The framework I walk clients through has four numbers: maximum approval, comfortable carry, closing buffer, and rate-reset buffer. Once you see all four on a page, the right price tier picks itself.
Maximum approval is what the bank says. Comfortable carry is usually well below that. Closing buffer is PTT plus legal, adjustments and inspection. Rate-reset buffer is what your carry looks like if rates are 2% higher at renewal. If any of those four numbers breaks, the purchase price is wrong.
Very rarely. The top of your approval is where the stress test just barely passed. The smart move is usually to stay comfortably below your maximum, which leaves room for life, rate resets, and the closing buffer.
Minimum is 5% on first $500K plus 10% on the remaining $400K — that is $65K minimum. Putting down more lowers your mortgage and, at 20% or more, removes mortgage default insurance.
Closing costs. PTT alone on an $800K home is around $14K. Add legal, adjustments, title insurance, and moving on top — get quotes from your lawyer or notary early.
It typically reduces your buying power by 15–20% versus what your contract rate alone would allow. That is not a rounding error — it is the difference between a $900K and a $750K home.
Rate timing is the hardest call in real estate. What matters more is your personal financial readiness and the local market at your price tier. That is usually where the right decision is made.
Yes. The federal Home Buyers' Plan lets first-time buyers withdraw up to $60,000 per individual from their RRSPs without immediate tax, repaid over 15 years. For a couple buying together, that's up to $120,000.
Yes. The BC Property Transfer Tax exemption for first-time buyers applies anywhere in BC, including Coquitlam. The first $500,000 of the price is exempt (worth up to $8,000) on qualifying purchases up to $835,000, with a partial exemption up to $860,000. Above $860,000 no PTT exemption is available, even for first-time buyers.
The federal GST New Housing Rebate is 36% of the GST paid, in full on new construction up to $350,000, then a sliding-scale partial rebate up to $450,000; above $450,000 there is no rebate. Separately, the federal First-Time Home Buyers' GST Rebate removes the GST on a qualifying new build up to $1M for first-time buyers, which materially changes the math on new construction. BC has no separate provincial GST rebate, so confirm specifics with your accountant.
I will walk your income, debts, and savings against today's rate environment and Coquitlam prices. No pressure. Just the truth about what you can buy comfortably.
The pages that complete the affordability picture.
I have spent the last 47+ years living in Coquitlam, 9+ years on Burke Mountain, helping move-up buyers and sellers get from where they are to where they want to be — without the panic of owning two homes at once or selling under value. I work the Tri-Cities every day: Burke Mountain, Westwood Plateau, Heritage Mountain, and the rest of the Tri-Cities’ move-up neighbourhoods.
If you want a straight read on your timing, pricing, or move-up strategy, the fastest next step is a short call.
Every cost, tax, and legal step in the Coquitlam buying process is spelled out by a government or regulatory authority below. Use these as the definitive source — your agent and lawyer should line up with them, not the other way around.
External links open in a new tab. I'm not affiliated with these organizations — they are cited as independent authorities. Any time a number on this page differs from the authority, the authority wins.
Real reviews pulled from Google. No paid placements. No curated-only-positives. Every client below closed with Craig.
“We had such a great experience working with Craig to buy our home! He was incredibly knowledgeable, patient, and always available whenever we needed him. He made us feel supported throughout the entire process and was always willing to answer our questions and take the time to make sure we felt comfortable and confident in our decisions. We never felt pressured or rushed.”
“Craig sold my property in just 6 days, which is an incredible feat. After receiving one offer, he quickly reconnected with all the other realtors who had viewed the property, and before I knew it, we had multiple offers—all over asking price!”
“We received seven offers, and Craig held firm on our priorities: no subject to sale and achieving our price. We took the home off the market over Christmas, but behind the scenes Craig continued working. When we re-listed in January, it sold in just three days to buyers he had been nurturing — at the price we wanted.”
“Craig worked with my wife and me for over 3 years to find the perfect home. He was endlessly patient with us through the process. Eventually, we found our perfect home and he moved fast to execute on our behalf. He negotiated fairly and thoroughly with the sellers and was our advocate all throughout our first home purchase.”
“Craig kept me informed of the local market for a couple of years before I asked him to handle my Coquitlam sale. He laid out the strategy upfront, the listing generated a lot of interest, and we had an acceptable offer in under a month. I was stressed going in — Craig helped me overcome a lot of my anxiety. I’ve already introduced him to my sister, who plans to sell soon.”
“Craig was there with us everyday. Guiding us to our next step we were kept informed daily sometimes multiple times a day as to what was happening… Our home sold in only 6 days with multiple offers.”
“After searching for several years, I knew exactly what I was looking for—and Craig delivered. We viewed a handful of properties, and the home he ultimately found was exactly what I had been searching for. I couldn't believe how quickly he nailed it.”
“We had a fantastic experience working with Craig, who was recommended by a friend. He patiently guided us through the process to purchase our family forever home in Vancouver, explaining all the steps and answering all of our many questions. He was always responsive and available whenever we needed him and always felt like he wanted the absolute best for us.”
“One of the sales was my Mom’s home. She is 97 and so this was a very emotional issue to be leaving her beloved home of so many years… Craig was extremely patient in explaining the market and was very sensitive to her concerns. We can’t thank him enough for his empathy and understanding in working with an elderly person through a difficult time in a very caring manor!”
More on Buying in Coquitlam
Every page below is built on the same ground-truth data and the same negotiation playbook Craig uses for every client.
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