It just became more affordable to purchase a new mobile home – provided it’s being placed in a mobile home park.

At Tuesday’s council meeting, members passed second and third readings on a change to the building and plumbing bylaw. It reduced the required EnerGuide rating on the factory-built homes, provided they are in a mobile home park.

The city had adopted higher standards requiring all homes – including mobile homes – to meet a minimum EnerGuide rating (which measures energy efficiency) of 82.

The standard took effect for new mobile homes as of last July.

As city planning manager Pat Ross explained to council at an earlier meeting, the zoning for sites in mobile home parks ensures only factory-built homes designed to be transported are placed in the parks and that no structural modifications nor assembly are required once they are in place.

Modifications are also restricted so that the home does not become a permanent structure, thus making it difficult to move if required.

That restriction also makes it difficult to add features that would make the home more energy-efficient, thus creating a conflict between the zoning and building bylaws.

And then there’s the added cost if the work is done prior to the home leaving the factory.

Custom-ordering a home to meet the higher standards with more insulation adds another 15 to 20 per cent to the price tag. It can also impact the height of the building, creating problems in meeting other requirements for transporting a mobile home up the highway to Whitehorse, Ross explained.

An EnerGuide rating of 78 meets the National Building Code and is the standard mobile homes are built to.

Coun. Dan Boyd had raised concerns about the EnerGuide rating on new mobile homes being calculated in the factory by manufacturers.

However, it was noted in a summary provided to council Tuesday that the home is also inspected for energy efficiency once it’s on site in the mobile home park.

“An energy advisor provides a component of quality assurance once work is completed on homes qualified to be labelled under the EnerGuide rating system,” it was noted.

“To ensure mobile homes produced in factories match the specifications used in the default modeling process, an energy advisor also completes an on-site inspection once the home arrives at the new site.”

EnerGuide ratings can only be conducted by a certified energy advisor on behalf of Natural Resources Canada.

NDP housing critic Kate White, who has continued to raise issues around affordable housing in the territory’s capital, praised the change to the bylaw when it was brought forward.

Previously, those faced with relocation to another mobile home park would have a challenge to meet the higher EnerGuide regulations, she said.

“I think the city deserves a high five,” she said, noting the city took a holistic approach to the issue and struck a balance in providing for a comfortable but more affordable housing option.