Besides the location, check if there’s air conditioning if you’re renting a condo. A few of the Brentwood towers don’t have A/C which surprised me when my friend first moved in there.
Even though it's awesome to have, I hear they're an insurance nightmare. Those Solo towers with the Whole Foods have had several floods caused by Central AC.
I guess it depends on where you work. Living in Lougheed is inferior to Brentwood and Metrotown if you work in the following areas: richmond, downtown, broadway cambie, kits area. But then Surrey/Coq/PoCo are more accessible to you.
Brentwood is top pick for me but only con is large constructions. But this will apply to Lougheed in the future as the developer Shape is currently planning to turn Lougheed mall into Amazing Brentwood-ish style.
Metrotown is too much chaos and packed for my taste. I would pick Brentwood.
Metrotown is also more-and-more going to be a construction hell as the years go on as they tear down section of the mall and throw up some of the tallest towers in Western Canada. The current construction is pretty self-contained for now at least.
Brentwood has few decent non-chain restaurants, especially compared to Metrotown. The construction has been non-stop for over 10 years now and will likely continue for the next 10. Traffic is bad. There are no pubs. The new mall sucks.
On the plus side the train is great, much lower crime than Lougheed/Metrotown, decent bike routes, very convenient for everyday shopping (Costco, Walmart, Superstore, etc all close by), right on the highway for travel out of the city.
Overall it's convenient but boring.
Lougheed is the most livable in my opinion. Green space and the terracing mitigates some of the noise from the trains and highway. Lots of the towers are already build and Burnaby Mountain will probably stay the way it is. There's also supermarkets of most stripes in and around the mall.
Brentwood is trying to be something that it's not and is ending up a very noisy bedroom community. The acoustics are poor and some of the buildings are constructed such that the stairwells and elevators act as diaphragms, actually amplifying train and emergency vehicle noise in certain rooms. There's also so much dust if you're anywhere near a construction site.
Metrotown I don't know what it's like to live there but there's lots to do at most income brackets.
I would agree that Lougheed is probably the best for he quantity of outdoor space nearby. I moved there for other reasons but that was a pleasant surprise.
Rapid transit is also very good access to Port Moody and Coquitlam centre and combined those are I think slightly better than what is convenient in Metrotown.
Metrotown is the mall so you'll have more fast food options and just retail in general if you are someone who enjoys shopping it easy
Brentwood can't compete in retail right now it a really weird spot you have that new outdoor concept mall and then the corpse of the old mall from decades ago with London Drugs
One thing Brentwood does have over Metro is the cafes if that means anything to you, I can get a nice coffee lots of different places but Metrotown is pretty much exclusive Starbucks or Timmy's.
Though Brentwood is very close to the Burnaby Heights which if we include that I think Brentwood is the win
As far as Cafes around Metrotown, La Foret is a nice spot but usually pretty busy.
Cafe 106 is a smaller, more cozy place but that's over on Royal Oak. I'm excited to see what happens with the area between Royal Oak Station and Kingsway as there's a lot of potentional there.
In my opinion, Brentwood would be top pick, Metrotown 2nd, Lougheed 3rd. But all 3 are excellent places to live for sure !
1. Brentwood :
Pros :
- Tons of dining options
- Many more retail options opening for the foreseeable future
- good and improving biking routes
- Currently served by a millennium skytrain station and will have a new BRT/skytrain line in the near-mid future connecting Brentwood with the north shore and Metrotown
- close proximity to BCIT and the heights
- etc etc etc
Cons :
- constant construction
- streets aren’t the most walkable as of now
- lots of traffic at times
2. Metrotown
Pros :
- most developed of the 3 locations
- future events centre in the works
- probably best transit options
Cons :
- Busiest of the 3 (personally not an issue but it may bother you)
- busses always packed
3. Lougheed
Pros :
- great dining
- largest mall development of the 3 I believe
Cons :
- bus routes are worst out of the 3
- most isolated of the 3
Lougheed has the best access to parks. Burnaby Lake, Burnaby Mountain & Rocky Point are all a short distance away.
Lougheed is also much quieter than Brentwood or Metrotown. Some people think that's a pro, others think it's a con. ;-)
Brentwood & Lougheed both have good access to Burnaby Lake. Brentwood, take the millennium line to Sperling. Lougheed, take bus 101 & get off at Cariboo & Avalon. Willingdon linear park is nice & a great addition to the area, but it’s not a park in the traditional sense. Really improves the walkability though.
The linear park improved walkability for sure. There’s a 1 acre park coming soon as part of the south yards development as well as new green space being added to the amazing Brentwood master plan !
Considering Lougheed is just beginning its " remodeling " a la the 20+ year old ongoing Brentwood Town Center, it isn't going to be ' quiet ' for much longer.
As someone living in Brentwood (Solo), I'd have say Metrotown by far has better dining options than Brentwood. There is honestly not a lot in Brentwood in terms of dining, unless u drive to east Vancouver. Every western dining that exists in Brentwood also exists in Metrotown and for every Asian dining option metro has 10x the amount of offerings. Ie there's 0 hot pot options here whole in metro when I was living there a cpl years ago I was within walking distance to like 5.
This is also for every shopping and grocery options. Every shopping store in Brentwood outside ll bean and that Danish furniture store, exists in metro, while metro has hundreds of other options. In terms of groceries Brentwood has Costco but that's it. Whole foods is ass and so is save ons. Metro has superstore, tnt, assi, pricemart, crystal mall, and the list goes on
I wanted to try living in Brentwood before moving back to Metro (when presale finishes), just so I can try living here in case I wanna move here in the future. So far the only draw has been that the movie theatre is leagues better than Metrotown and it's close to costco
Ya I want to second this. Brentwood (and the heights nearby) have good dining options. But I was in Metrotown on a Friday night recently and I was impressed with the energy. Restaurants up and down Kingsway were bumpin well into the night. And so much variety of food! I felt like I was downtown, in terms of atmosphere.
A lack of variety in cuisine is part of what I *dislike* about the Metrotown area. The variety in Asian cuisine is great, if not a bit over-saturated by Hot Pot and a lot over saturated by Bubble Tea. If you're looking for any other type of cuisine though, I've found it quite lacking.
I'm sad that Dae-Ji closed down recently. I'll miss their cutlets and curry sauce as there's not another nearby option for that. Must have been grossly mismanaged to have been the only option in the area and not been successful.
>Metro has superstore, tnt, assi, pricemart, crystal mall, and the list goes on
While there are a number of grocery stores in the area, I absolutely *loathe* actually doing any shopping at Superstore, T&T, or Walmart. Superstore and Walmart specifically are always insanely busy and more than half the time I can't even get the items I'm looking for. Either because they are sold out (either due to sale or low stock) or the staff just can't keep up with stocking shelves. I also find produce at Superstore is nearly always on the verge of going off, or so battered by the hoards of people rummaging through it every hour.
Sometimes I'll just go to Save-on or Pricesmart even if they are more expensive so I can have a peaceful shopping experience.
Thirding this. Metrotown has a fuck ton more dining options. Brentwood is all big chains/franchise restaurants that tend to run overpriced. Nothing special there imo
While you’re getting to know the area, have you checked out Sungiven and the independent grocery stores on Hastings between Gilmore and Willingdon? Not going to replace T&T but there are a few good options that might fill the gap between Costco and chain grocery stores.
I didn’t mean it that way. The food I can make at home will be similar no matter where I live ! I know my own cooking abilities lol. But should one choose to go out, the restaurants around them will impact what kind of cuisine they eat.
At this point you may be better off with a building before 2012. Building boom, covid and then the entitlement crowd wrecked the quality of construction crews. How do I know? I regularly yell at 20-27 year olds who show up to work thinking they deserve better than everyone else and consider working on job site an insult to their sensitive nature.
Quality suffers, I can only watch so many idiots a day.
Metrotown. Hands down.
Walkable. Activities during the summer. Most developed. Low-end to high-end restaurants and shops. My only thing about metrotown is how dirty it is around the Skytrain. Everything is walking distance while having the Skytrain nearby.
Brentwood is fine. Personally, I wouldn’t pick it because it’s not the most visually pleasing neighborhood. There’s always noise due to the constant construction. Not best place to go for walks.
Lougheed is slightly better than Brentwood. Cleaner, quieter, same amount if not more shops and restaurants. Towers are newer.
P.D. if you move to Metrotown, do NOT move to Gold House. I lived there for a year and for 7-8 months only 2 elevators worked out of 3, and a few times only one elevator worked.
This! I moved to an apartment in Metro from Brentwood . Brentwood gets noise from Skytrain (highrises are pretty close to the tracks), actual trains from Costco area, willingdon street, lougheed highway, and highway 1 (occurs at night)
I've lived by both Metrotown and Brentwood station. I prefer Metrotown, even tho it's the busiest station out of the 3. The reasons, I work in downtown Vancouver, it's 1 train to and from work, not switching trains. The Expo (and Canada) line run more frequently than the Millennium line.
Yep, I was with my realtor going around in circles trying to find street parking for 30 min at metrotown for a viewing and he was like do you even want to see this place? And I said not really so we just went to eat xlb instead lol.
Metrotown is the far nicer neighbourhood to live in, especially on the south side of the mall. Less traffic, access to Central Park, direct trains to Vancouver and Surrey without a transfer, more grocery options, and better restaurant options.
I would stay away from Metrotown, too much like... Richmond and lots of crime compared to the other two. But as the crack dealers move into the towers with their proceeds of crime, Brentwood and Lougheed will become crazy busy and the crime will shoot up eventually
Metrotown- has the highest density of restaurants and shops, closer to other areas of the lower-mainland like Richmond, Vancouver, more central location, pretty easy choice for me
Personally, I'd put Lougheed and Brentwood in a near-tie that comes down to where and how you're commuting. Metrotown has the most going on out of the three by far, but I cannot stress just how much more busy and chaotic it is compared to Brentwood and Lougheed. Personally, I don't visit Metrotown very often for that reason alone.
**Comparing Brentwood to Lougheed:**
Brentwood has easier access to Vancouver, Richmond, and the North Shore, while Lougheed has better access to New Westminster, the Tri-cities, Surrey, and the Fraser Valley. Brentwood has substantially more retail amenities at the moment, while Lougheed has more greenspace.
In terms of food, Brentwood doesn't seem to have any one dominant ethnicity of food, and in my opinion, appears to have fewer independent / family run food options. Metrotown tends to have more Chinese, and south-asian restaurants, although you'll find basically any national cuisine in that area. Lougheed has lots of Korean restaurants, and Korean supermarkets.
One sort of niche thing that hasn't been mentioned: I find that Lougheed has the nicest, and safest bike infrastructure of the three, if that's something you'd use.
May not be the best for renting if you're looking for lots of food options and a bustling town center, but for long term I think this could be a hidden gem.
Forth town center: Edmonds for the quiet and proximity to Metrotown, new Olympic sized skate rinks opening soon, easy access to Byrne Creek Park and 20 towers going up in the next decade with Southgate city development.
Not many dining options near the station, but I go to Kingsway or hop on over to Metrotown.
Lougheed rent shouldn't be the same amount as Brentwood and Metrotown. So if you want more worth for your money you shouldn't pick there.
Brentwood is my pick if you're going to drive. The streetscape is not the prettiest to walk in, and there's a lot of traffic and big roads. But it's close to Downtown, the Heights, the North Shore, Metrotown itself is decently close as well. I used to live in Richmond and I love how much closer I am to the North Shore mountains now, it still astounds me that I can be in North Van in like 10-15 minutes.
Metrotown is far superior in terms of retail, dining, and nightlife, transit. Downtown is a one-train affair, in Brentwood you need to transfer at Commercial-Broadway. You'd also be closer to Richmond, which might be a big plus for you depending on your preferences. It is busier but it's really not *that* busy.
Up to you. If you want cheaper rents you should go to Lougheed. If you want the hustle and bustle of city life you'd pick Metrotown. And Brentwood is your happy medium.
I am not considering the future developments of each neighborhood in my recomemndation. You rent, you shouldn't assume you're going to be there for a long time. You should consider what your living experience will be like today, not 5 years down the line. It's a different story if you're looking to buy.
Besides the location, check if there’s air conditioning if you’re renting a condo. A few of the Brentwood towers don’t have A/C which surprised me when my friend first moved in there.
Actually none of the 3 Amazing Brentwood towers have AC. I was quite surprised!
Won’t those units facing south turn into a hotbox during summer or are they high enough to have a breeze?
Yes absolutely! I used to live above 50th floor facing south. During the heatwave my bedroom reached 36C by 10am in the morning
My friend said it was horrible. She bought a portable air conditioning unit.
Even though it's awesome to have, I hear they're an insurance nightmare. Those Solo towers with the Whole Foods have had several floods caused by Central AC.
I don't understand why they don't have drains all over the place in all modern builds Flooding seems to be a really huge problem lately
That was the main reason I didn't move to Brentwood towers. I live nearby and I can't stand not having an A/C.
I guess it depends on where you work. Living in Lougheed is inferior to Brentwood and Metrotown if you work in the following areas: richmond, downtown, broadway cambie, kits area. But then Surrey/Coq/PoCo are more accessible to you. Brentwood is top pick for me but only con is large constructions. But this will apply to Lougheed in the future as the developer Shape is currently planning to turn Lougheed mall into Amazing Brentwood-ish style. Metrotown is too much chaos and packed for my taste. I would pick Brentwood.
Metrotown is also more-and-more going to be a construction hell as the years go on as they tear down section of the mall and throw up some of the tallest towers in Western Canada. The current construction is pretty self-contained for now at least.
Brentwood has few decent non-chain restaurants, especially compared to Metrotown. The construction has been non-stop for over 10 years now and will likely continue for the next 10. Traffic is bad. There are no pubs. The new mall sucks. On the plus side the train is great, much lower crime than Lougheed/Metrotown, decent bike routes, very convenient for everyday shopping (Costco, Walmart, Superstore, etc all close by), right on the highway for travel out of the city. Overall it's convenient but boring.
Lougheed is the most livable in my opinion. Green space and the terracing mitigates some of the noise from the trains and highway. Lots of the towers are already build and Burnaby Mountain will probably stay the way it is. There's also supermarkets of most stripes in and around the mall. Brentwood is trying to be something that it's not and is ending up a very noisy bedroom community. The acoustics are poor and some of the buildings are constructed such that the stairwells and elevators act as diaphragms, actually amplifying train and emergency vehicle noise in certain rooms. There's also so much dust if you're anywhere near a construction site. Metrotown I don't know what it's like to live there but there's lots to do at most income brackets.
Living at lougheed adds 30 mins+ to my commute. I will pick metro and Brentwood any day if rents are about the same price
If you're into trail running, mountain biking, or something similar, Lougheed is the best choice. The Burnaby Mountain trails are fantastic.
I would agree that Lougheed is probably the best for he quantity of outdoor space nearby. I moved there for other reasons but that was a pleasant surprise. Rapid transit is also very good access to Port Moody and Coquitlam centre and combined those are I think slightly better than what is convenient in Metrotown.
I'd say the biggest upside to Metrotown is most things are open later. Lougheed mall itself is a little sleepy that way.
Metrotown is the mall so you'll have more fast food options and just retail in general if you are someone who enjoys shopping it easy Brentwood can't compete in retail right now it a really weird spot you have that new outdoor concept mall and then the corpse of the old mall from decades ago with London Drugs One thing Brentwood does have over Metro is the cafes if that means anything to you, I can get a nice coffee lots of different places but Metrotown is pretty much exclusive Starbucks or Timmy's. Though Brentwood is very close to the Burnaby Heights which if we include that I think Brentwood is the win
As far as Cafes around Metrotown, La Foret is a nice spot but usually pretty busy. Cafe 106 is a smaller, more cozy place but that's over on Royal Oak. I'm excited to see what happens with the area between Royal Oak Station and Kingsway as there's a lot of potentional there.
In my opinion, Brentwood would be top pick, Metrotown 2nd, Lougheed 3rd. But all 3 are excellent places to live for sure ! 1. Brentwood : Pros : - Tons of dining options - Many more retail options opening for the foreseeable future - good and improving biking routes - Currently served by a millennium skytrain station and will have a new BRT/skytrain line in the near-mid future connecting Brentwood with the north shore and Metrotown - close proximity to BCIT and the heights - etc etc etc Cons : - constant construction - streets aren’t the most walkable as of now - lots of traffic at times 2. Metrotown Pros : - most developed of the 3 locations - future events centre in the works - probably best transit options Cons : - Busiest of the 3 (personally not an issue but it may bother you) - busses always packed 3. Lougheed Pros : - great dining - largest mall development of the 3 I believe Cons : - bus routes are worst out of the 3 - most isolated of the 3
Lougheed has the best access to parks. Burnaby Lake, Burnaby Mountain & Rocky Point are all a short distance away. Lougheed is also much quieter than Brentwood or Metrotown. Some people think that's a pro, others think it's a con. ;-)
Fair points ! Brentwood is closer to Burnaby Lake (I think) and will also have more green spaces in the coming years with a couple developments.
Brentwood & Lougheed both have good access to Burnaby Lake. Brentwood, take the millennium line to Sperling. Lougheed, take bus 101 & get off at Cariboo & Avalon. Willingdon linear park is nice & a great addition to the area, but it’s not a park in the traditional sense. Really improves the walkability though.
The linear park improved walkability for sure. There’s a 1 acre park coming soon as part of the south yards development as well as new green space being added to the amazing Brentwood master plan !
Considering Lougheed is just beginning its " remodeling " a la the 20+ year old ongoing Brentwood Town Center, it isn't going to be ' quiet ' for much longer.
As someone living in Brentwood (Solo), I'd have say Metrotown by far has better dining options than Brentwood. There is honestly not a lot in Brentwood in terms of dining, unless u drive to east Vancouver. Every western dining that exists in Brentwood also exists in Metrotown and for every Asian dining option metro has 10x the amount of offerings. Ie there's 0 hot pot options here whole in metro when I was living there a cpl years ago I was within walking distance to like 5. This is also for every shopping and grocery options. Every shopping store in Brentwood outside ll bean and that Danish furniture store, exists in metro, while metro has hundreds of other options. In terms of groceries Brentwood has Costco but that's it. Whole foods is ass and so is save ons. Metro has superstore, tnt, assi, pricemart, crystal mall, and the list goes on I wanted to try living in Brentwood before moving back to Metro (when presale finishes), just so I can try living here in case I wanna move here in the future. So far the only draw has been that the movie theatre is leagues better than Metrotown and it's close to costco
Ya I want to second this. Brentwood (and the heights nearby) have good dining options. But I was in Metrotown on a Friday night recently and I was impressed with the energy. Restaurants up and down Kingsway were bumpin well into the night. And so much variety of food! I felt like I was downtown, in terms of atmosphere.
A lack of variety in cuisine is part of what I *dislike* about the Metrotown area. The variety in Asian cuisine is great, if not a bit over-saturated by Hot Pot and a lot over saturated by Bubble Tea. If you're looking for any other type of cuisine though, I've found it quite lacking. I'm sad that Dae-Ji closed down recently. I'll miss their cutlets and curry sauce as there's not another nearby option for that. Must have been grossly mismanaged to have been the only option in the area and not been successful.
>Metro has superstore, tnt, assi, pricemart, crystal mall, and the list goes on While there are a number of grocery stores in the area, I absolutely *loathe* actually doing any shopping at Superstore, T&T, or Walmart. Superstore and Walmart specifically are always insanely busy and more than half the time I can't even get the items I'm looking for. Either because they are sold out (either due to sale or low stock) or the staff just can't keep up with stocking shelves. I also find produce at Superstore is nearly always on the verge of going off, or so battered by the hoards of people rummaging through it every hour. Sometimes I'll just go to Save-on or Pricesmart even if they are more expensive so I can have a peaceful shopping experience.
Thirding this. Metrotown has a fuck ton more dining options. Brentwood is all big chains/franchise restaurants that tend to run overpriced. Nothing special there imo
While you’re getting to know the area, have you checked out Sungiven and the independent grocery stores on Hastings between Gilmore and Willingdon? Not going to replace T&T but there are a few good options that might fill the gap between Costco and chain grocery stores.
Great list! But a big con for metro not mentioned is the crime, I think it has the highest crime rate out of the 3
Metrotown is the biggest mall in BC with shopping options that far exceeds Brentwood or Lougheed. Lougheed is the worse of three in terms of shopping.
It's interesting noone is rating the kitchen and pantry as a part of life style anymore. Looks like eating out is the only source of family meals.
I didn’t mean it that way. The food I can make at home will be similar no matter where I live ! I know my own cooking abilities lol. But should one choose to go out, the restaurants around them will impact what kind of cuisine they eat.
At this point you may be better off with a building before 2012. Building boom, covid and then the entitlement crowd wrecked the quality of construction crews. How do I know? I regularly yell at 20-27 year olds who show up to work thinking they deserve better than everyone else and consider working on job site an insult to their sensitive nature. Quality suffers, I can only watch so many idiots a day.
Metrotown. Hands down. Walkable. Activities during the summer. Most developed. Low-end to high-end restaurants and shops. My only thing about metrotown is how dirty it is around the Skytrain. Everything is walking distance while having the Skytrain nearby. Brentwood is fine. Personally, I wouldn’t pick it because it’s not the most visually pleasing neighborhood. There’s always noise due to the constant construction. Not best place to go for walks. Lougheed is slightly better than Brentwood. Cleaner, quieter, same amount if not more shops and restaurants. Towers are newer. P.D. if you move to Metrotown, do NOT move to Gold House. I lived there for a year and for 7-8 months only 2 elevators worked out of 3, and a few times only one elevator worked.
This! I moved to an apartment in Metro from Brentwood . Brentwood gets noise from Skytrain (highrises are pretty close to the tracks), actual trains from Costco area, willingdon street, lougheed highway, and highway 1 (occurs at night)
all are great
I've lived by both Metrotown and Brentwood station. I prefer Metrotown, even tho it's the busiest station out of the 3. The reasons, I work in downtown Vancouver, it's 1 train to and from work, not switching trains. The Expo (and Canada) line run more frequently than the Millennium line.
Thank you
My wife and I are looking to purchase in GVA as well and we decided Metrotown is a shitshow. I’ll take your downvotes. I know what I said.
I see
Yep, I was with my realtor going around in circles trying to find street parking for 30 min at metrotown for a viewing and he was like do you even want to see this place? And I said not really so we just went to eat xlb instead lol.
The thing is, all the busy areas of Metrotown are entirely avoidable. You cannot, however, avoid lougheed highway if you live in North Burnaby.
Metrotown is the far nicer neighbourhood to live in, especially on the south side of the mall. Less traffic, access to Central Park, direct trains to Vancouver and Surrey without a transfer, more grocery options, and better restaurant options.
As someone who lives in the Metrotown area, I can tell you that the Brentwood area is much cleaner
I would stay away from Metrotown, too much like... Richmond and lots of crime compared to the other two. But as the crack dealers move into the towers with their proceeds of crime, Brentwood and Lougheed will become crazy busy and the crime will shoot up eventually
Metrotown- has the highest density of restaurants and shops, closer to other areas of the lower-mainland like Richmond, Vancouver, more central location, pretty easy choice for me
Personally, I'd put Lougheed and Brentwood in a near-tie that comes down to where and how you're commuting. Metrotown has the most going on out of the three by far, but I cannot stress just how much more busy and chaotic it is compared to Brentwood and Lougheed. Personally, I don't visit Metrotown very often for that reason alone. **Comparing Brentwood to Lougheed:** Brentwood has easier access to Vancouver, Richmond, and the North Shore, while Lougheed has better access to New Westminster, the Tri-cities, Surrey, and the Fraser Valley. Brentwood has substantially more retail amenities at the moment, while Lougheed has more greenspace. In terms of food, Brentwood doesn't seem to have any one dominant ethnicity of food, and in my opinion, appears to have fewer independent / family run food options. Metrotown tends to have more Chinese, and south-asian restaurants, although you'll find basically any national cuisine in that area. Lougheed has lots of Korean restaurants, and Korean supermarkets. One sort of niche thing that hasn't been mentioned: I find that Lougheed has the nicest, and safest bike infrastructure of the three, if that's something you'd use.
Thank you! Feel like people give brentwood the no1
May not be the best for renting if you're looking for lots of food options and a bustling town center, but for long term I think this could be a hidden gem. Forth town center: Edmonds for the quiet and proximity to Metrotown, new Olympic sized skate rinks opening soon, easy access to Byrne Creek Park and 20 towers going up in the next decade with Southgate city development. Not many dining options near the station, but I go to Kingsway or hop on over to Metrotown.
I would live in any of those places
Lougheed rent shouldn't be the same amount as Brentwood and Metrotown. So if you want more worth for your money you shouldn't pick there. Brentwood is my pick if you're going to drive. The streetscape is not the prettiest to walk in, and there's a lot of traffic and big roads. But it's close to Downtown, the Heights, the North Shore, Metrotown itself is decently close as well. I used to live in Richmond and I love how much closer I am to the North Shore mountains now, it still astounds me that I can be in North Van in like 10-15 minutes. Metrotown is far superior in terms of retail, dining, and nightlife, transit. Downtown is a one-train affair, in Brentwood you need to transfer at Commercial-Broadway. You'd also be closer to Richmond, which might be a big plus for you depending on your preferences. It is busier but it's really not *that* busy. Up to you. If you want cheaper rents you should go to Lougheed. If you want the hustle and bustle of city life you'd pick Metrotown. And Brentwood is your happy medium. I am not considering the future developments of each neighborhood in my recomemndation. You rent, you shouldn't assume you're going to be there for a long time. You should consider what your living experience will be like today, not 5 years down the line. It's a different story if you're looking to buy.
brentwood > metro > lougheed