Due diligence in Whitehorse, YT
Costs, sequencing and the Yukon rules that decide what your scope has to include.
01Reference scope
Clean scope
$15,400–$60,900
50,000 sf industrial, lender-financed
Critical path
30 days
Engagement to reviewed drafts
Phase I
$3,100–$7,700
22-day turnaround
BCA
$4,900–$19,600
25-day turnaround
Whitehorse is a tier 3 market in the Envirolor roster, with roughly 900 commercial buildings and an average transaction size near $1,500,000. Diligence scope here is set by Yukon law, not by the city: the Environment Act (Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171) decides what has to be investigated and Yukon Department of Environment reviews the file.
Registry listing or a known release triggers investigation. Mobilisation, not regulation, sets the schedule: crews and labs are southern.
Site history in Whitehorse concentrates in the older municipal employment lands, where legacy tenancies and imported fill are the usual sources of an area of potential environmental concern.
Whitehorse adds no municipal requirement beyond the provincial regime; the permit process assumes the provincial filing has been dealt with.
Envirolor publishes no figure specific to a Whitehorse neighbourhood or corridor. Where a sub-market changes the answer it is said in a sentence here, on the market page, rather than spun into a page of its own.
Envirolor facts
- Whitehorse sits under Environment Act — Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171, reviewed by Yukon Department of Environment.
- Envirolor models a clean Whitehorse scope at $15,400–$60,900 over 30 calendar days.
- Yukon carries a 14-day scheduling penalty on intrusive work and a cost index of 1.40.
How these figures were produced
- Modelled — Derived arithmetically from observed inputs using the published method; not a market quote.
- Baseline seed — A documented starting estimate awaiting first observation. Treat as an order-of-magnitude figure only.
- Observed — Recorded directly from the cited source series, unadjusted.
Jurisdiction rules
Full Yukon diligence rules02Scope your own deal
Scope a Whitehorse deal
Enter the asset and the site history. The estimator decides which reports a lender and the Yukon regulator will actually require, prices each one, and sequences them into a calendar you can hold against your condition period.
Modelled cost
$15,400–$60,900
Midpoint $27,900
Critical path
30 days
Engagement to reviewed drafts
Risk screen
Low
No flag driving sampling
Condition period
15 days spare
Scope fits
| Report | Status | Cost band | Days | Lands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roof / envelopeA 41-year-old roof is usually the largest single line in the reserve table; a dedicated review turns a range into a number. | Recommended | $3,500–$15,400 | 19 | Day 19 |
| DSS / hazmatA 1985 building is pre-ban construction: the survey is legally required before any renovation or demolition is tendered, and the abatement number belongs in the purchase price. | Required | $3,900–$18,200 | 21 | Day 21 |
| Phase I ESAEvery lender on a commercial file requires a Phase I addressed to it with reliance, dated within six months of funding. | Required | $3,100–$7,700 | 22 | Day 22 |
| BCA / PCAThe lender's reserve requirement is set off the BCA's capital table, so it is a funding condition, not a nice-to-have. | Required | $4,900–$19,600 | 25 | Day 25 |
Out of scope, and why
- Phase II ESA — No area of potential environmental concern was flagged, so the Phase I should close without sampling. If it does not, add roughly the Phase II band to both cost and calendar.
- Geotech — An existing building with a known grading history rarely needs a geotech at acquisition; add one before any addition.
- Elevator — No elevating devices in the asset.
Take this with you
Diligence scope memo
A scope of work you can send to a consultant, attach to a lender package, or hold against a condition-period calendar. Print to PDF — nothing leaves your browser.
- Prepared
- 2026-10-09 by Envirolor
- Jurisdiction
- Yukon — Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171
- Asset
- 50,000 sf industrial, built 1985
- Site area
- 87,120 sf
- Risk screen
- Low (score 1)
- Condition period
- 45 calendar days
- Modelled cost
- $15,400–$60,900
- Critical path
- 30 calendar days
Scope of work
1. Roof and Building Envelope Review — Recommended
Roof-level inspection with core cuts where warranted, moisture scanning, flashing and parapet review, and an envelope assessment covering cladding, sealants and glazing, with remaining service life and replacement cost.
$3,500–$15,400 · engage day 0 · draft day 19
2. Designated Substance and Hazardous Materials Survey — Required
Bulk sampling and laboratory analysis for asbestos-containing materials, lead, mercury, silica and other designated substances, producing the inventory that must be handed to any contractor before demolition or renovation.
$3,900–$18,200 · engage day 0 · draft day 21
3. Phase I Environmental Site Assessment — Required
Records review (fire insurance plans, aerial photography, title, environmental registries), a site reconnaissance visit, and interviews with the owner, occupants and the municipality. The deliverable identifies areas of potential environmental concern (APECs) and states whether intrusive investigation is warranted.
$3,100–$7,700 · engage day 0 · draft day 22
4. Building Condition Assessment — Required
A walk-through of structure, envelope, roofing, mechanical, electrical, vertical transportation, life safety and site works, followed by an immediate-repair list and a capital reserve table projecting replacement costs over the study period.
$4,900–$19,600 · engage day 0 · draft day 25
Verdict
This scope runs 3 required and 1 discretionary report, for a modelled $15,400–$60,900 and a 30-day critical path from engagement to a reviewed set of drafts.
Against the 45-day condition period entered, that leaves 15 days of slack — enough to absorb one lab delay, not two.
No area of potential environmental concern was flagged, so the base case is a Phase I that closes clean. If it does not, the Phase II adds roughly 30 days and the sampling band to this answer.
Modelled figures produced by the Envirolor scoping method from published cost bands and the Environment Act (Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171). Not a quotation and not professional advice. Confirm scope and fees with a qualified consultant before relying on this memo.
03Questions
What does a Phase I ESA cost in Whitehorse?
$3,100–$7,700 on a 50,000 sf commercial building, with a 22-day turnaround. Yukon's cost index of 1.40 is applied; the fee is not materially different between Whitehorse and other Yukon markets, because the standard and the reviewer are provincial.
Who regulates contaminated sites in Whitehorse?
Yukon Department of Environment, under the Environment Act (Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171). The city itself issues permits but does not set the assessment standard.
How long should a Whitehorse condition period be?
A clean scope on the reference asset needs 30 calendar days end to end. Add the Phase II duration in full if the site history is likely to force sampling — it cannot run in parallel.
04Sources
Where these figures come from
Sources
- [1] Environment Act — Contaminated Sites Regulation, O.I.C. 2002/171 — Administered by Yukon Department of Environment.
- [2] Statistics Canada census metropolitan area profiles — Population and building-count context.
Envirolor Data Desk method · Last updated 2026-08-15 · Maintained by Envirolor Data Desk
Scope: Whitehorse, YT — tier 3 market
Inputs: Envirolor modelled cost bands; Environment Act
Next scheduled review: 2026-11-15
Not advice — Envirolor is a data publisher. We do not perform, certify, or supervise professional work, and nothing here is a quote, an engagement, or professional advice. Figures are indicative benchmarks for comparison and must be confirmed with a qualified professional before you rely on them. About Envirolor