01 / Requirement
Write the operating test first.
Define intended use, process, people, customers, deliveries, equipment, parking, loading, utilities, area, timing, capital and exit before touring. A property can be attractive and still fail the actual business, investment or development requirement.
Weights should express the decision—not manufacture a preferred answer. Keep mandatory requirements, preferences, assumptions and professional-review items visibly separate.
02 / Site tour
Observe, measure, then verify.
A tour can record layout, access, apparent systems and operational conflicts. It cannot establish title, legal area, approved use, code compliance, structural condition, environmental condition, service capacity or future cost.
Photographs, measurements, testing, roof access, tenant areas and intrusive work require appropriate permission. A brokerage walk-through is not a professional property-condition assessment.
03 / Approvals
Prior occupancy does not approve the next use.
Calgary states that businesses require location approval, while Edmonton strongly encourages zoning approval before signing a lease and explains that a permitted use can still require a development permit. The exact municipality, activity, prior use, intensity and proposed work control the path.
Accessibility, building, fire, health, trade, sign and business-licence requirements remain separate workstreams. Conditions and professional review should address them before commitment or waiver.
04 / Limits
Coverage before confidence.
The weighted percentage reflects only user-entered scores for reviewed criteria. A high percentage with low coverage can be materially misleading, and equal scores can conceal different risks, costs and timing.
This tool is not an inspection, title opinion, zoning confirmation, environmental assessment, appraisal, engineering review, lease interpretation, investment recommendation or representation that a property is suitable or approved.