Photo by Tyler Olsen

This is the first story in The Changing Valley, an ongoing series on how housing and migration are changing the Fraser Valley. Click here to read our other stories on how house prices, migration, and changing demographics are changing the region. For immediate access to every story we write and more in-depth news about the Fraser Valley, subscribe to our daily newsletter below.

Laura Scotten never envisioned herself living in the Fraser Valley. She and her husband had lived in East Vancouver and been happy there. They liked the city: its walkability, the food options, and the other great things about urban life.

But life, COVID, and the economics of homeownership in one of the least affordable housing markets on earth, had other thoughts. When Laura and her husband Jason Nicholls had a child, and then as that kid started to move around, the couple learned something that parents everywhere quickly realize: space is a precious commodity when a kid goes from crawling to running. That was especially true amid a pandemic that left families everywhere grasping for room outside. So Laura and Jason sold their house and temporarily moved into Jason’s parents’ larger home in Surrey. And as they looked around for a place of their own, it became evident that going back to condo living—or Vancouver—likely wasn’t in the cards.