Budget estimator
What will this space cost to build?
An order-of-magnitude construction budget on current Metro Vancouver rates, net of a landlord allowance by asset class. Not a quotation — but enough to tell you whether the deal in front of you is fundable.
The rates behind the estimator
Published here in full so you can check the assumptions rather than trust a black box. All figures are hard construction cost per square foot, current for September 2026.
| Space type | Hard cost / sq ft |
|---|---|
| Office — Class B / refresh | $120 – $190 |
| Office — Class A / full build-out | $180 – $300 |
| Retail & showroom | $110 – $250 |
| Medical & dental | $200 – $350 |
| Restaurant & café | $220 – $450 |
| Fitness & studio | $130 – $250 |
| Industrial — warehouse side | $60 – $120 |
| Industrial — office within | $130 – $200 |
Landlord allowance ranges by asset class. The single most common budgeting error we see is applying a downtown Class A allowance to suburban Class B space.
| Asset class | Allowance / sq ft |
|---|---|
| Suburban office (Class B/C) | $40 – $65 |
| Downtown office (Class A) | $60 – $80 |
| Retail — street level | $30 – $50 |
| Retail — mall / CRU | $40 – $70 |
| Industrial / flex | $15 – $30 |
Condition multipliers: existing fit-out ×0.65, base building shell ×1.0, full gut or change of use ×1.2.
Finish multipliers: functional ×0.85, standard ×1.0, elevated ×1.3.
Specialist-scope adjustment: for full mechanical/electrical/plumbing or specialist rooms, the low end of the range is raised to its midpoint — the cheap end of a range does not apply to a dental clinic or a kitchen. The published rates themselves do not change.
Total project cost: hard cost plus 50%, split as Cushman & Wakefield's worked example: soft costs 10%, furniture 22%, audio-visual 12%, IT 4%, miscellaneous 2%.
The comparison worth making
A downtown Class A allowance of roughly $77 per square foot sits against a Vancouver office fit-out averaging $199 per square foot in hard construction cost alone. A tenant funds well over half of a standard office build-out out of pocket — considerably more once furniture, IT and audio-visual are counted. Any plan treating the allowance as covering the work is short by a factor of two.
About this estimator
How accurate is this estimator?
It is an order-of-magnitude tool, not a quotation. It applies published Metro Vancouver rate ranges to your area and adjusts for starting condition and finish level. Real projects vary with existing conditions, service capacity and what a change of occupancy triggers — none of which a calculator can see.
Does the estimate include furniture, IT and professional fees?
The construction hard cost does not. The total project cost does: it adds 50% to hard cost, split as Cushman & Wakefield's published worked example — soft costs 10% (design, engineering, permit fees and project management), furniture 22%, audio-visual 12%, IT 4% and miscellaneous 2%. GST is excluded unless you switch it on, and PST on furniture and equipment is not included.
Why does the estimator subtract a landlord allowance?
Because the number that matters to a tenant is what they fund, not what the work costs. Most estimators show gross construction cost and stop there. Allowances vary by asset class rather than by market, so the tool asks which one applies rather than applying a single blended figure.
What is a typical tenant improvement allowance in Metro Vancouver?
Suburban Class B and C office typically runs $40–$65 per square foot, downtown Class A $60–$80, retail $30–$70 depending on format, and industrial $15–$30. Avison Young reported a Q4 2025 Metro Vancouver weighted average of $77.49 per square foot, which reflects Class A office and should not be applied to suburban space.
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Want the real number?
Send the unit, the square footage and your target opening date. We will price it against the actual space rather than a rate table.