National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund

Funding for not-for-profit organizations, registered charities and Indigenous partners to advance housing research in Canada. Funds help promote interest, involvement and capacity building in housing research.

The National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund supports the development of evidence and highly focused expertise within the affordable housing sector to understand and overcome housing challenges, particularly for vulnerable populations.

Stage 1 applications are now closed.

Fund details

The National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund provides support to the following organizations undertaking housing research:

not-for-profit organizations
registered charities
Indigenous governments and organizations

National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund objectives are to:

build collaboration, engagement and alignment with stakeholders
support the housing community’s research capacity development

This stakeholder-focused funding opportunity helps promote engagement in housing research outside of government by:

developing solutions to improve affordable housing for communities across Canada
supporting data development
cultivating and supporting highly focused expertise to rapidly overcome challenges

This fund provides $750,000 annually to fund new and ongoing projects in 4 activity streams:

individual research projects: up to $100,000.
programs of research: up to $250,000 for a program which can be distributed over 2 years
planning activities: up to $50,000
knowledge mobilization projects: up to $50,000

For all streams, you must provide a minimum of 25% (cash and/or in-kind contributions) of the total project cost.

The budget available for this initiative is subject to availability of funds. These funds are determined by an annual vote by parliamentary appropriations and the conditions that may be attached to them.

Duration:

Funds must be used within 2 years of release.

In-kind contributions:

The total project cost will be the CMHC fund request plus the in-kind contributions. Ultimately, CMHC’s contribution is a maximum 75% of the total project cost.

The types of in-kind contributions that are recognized and considered eligible are:

equipment
access to unique databases/software
professional, analytical, or other services
employee salaries (for example, the salary of an employee not listed on the application form)
use of facilities
materials and technology
licenses

Eligible activities include:

1. Individual research projects

Projects may include (but are not limited to) research activities such as:

literature reviews
environmental scans (domestic and international)
surveys and interviews
testing
evaluations
data gathering and analysis
profiles
case studies
reporting findings

Funding can also be used to help hire consultants to conduct this work.

2. Programs of research

A program of research includes more than one coordinated and connected research project. These projects are conducted in parallel or successively, to collectively advance knowledge in a particular topic or theme. Programs of research seek to leverage the findings from multiple research projects to more completely assess and advance knowledge.

3. Planning activities

Activities may include, but are not limited to the following:

stakeholder consultations, including citizen engagement activities
environmental scan or preliminary synthesis of relevant literature, activities or programs
gatherings of stakeholders to facilitate regional, national and/or international collaboration among individuals or groups from a variety of backgrounds
hiring consultants to prepare research applications for groups that don’t have the capacity to do so on their own

4. Knowledge mobilization projects

Activities may include, but are not limited to the following:

designing, developing and delivering knowledge mobilization strategies such as:
- brochures
- posters
- presentations
- mock-ups and models
- in person or on-line forums
- information sharing platforms
- educational seminars
engagement and facilitation activities

You can submit a project that is part of a larger initiative, however, the application must clearly identify:

the activities and deliverables of the proposed project (distinct from the larger initiative)
what incremental work CMHC is being asked to fund (distinct from other sources of funding)

*Note: Applications will be evaluated for the project for which CMHC funding is requested, not on the larger initiative.

Budget

The budget should be broken down by fiscal year (April 1 to March 31), project phases (if applicable) and key deliverables. It should describe all:

costs associated with the proposed project activities
proposed sources of revenue for these activities

The budget must be inclusive of taxes if applicable.

Reasonable overhead costs are an allowable budget line item.

There is no maximum or minimum allocation for administrative overhead. The reasonableness of the overhead cost will be assessed by the proposal evaluation committee by considering: .

the overhead cost relative to the overall funding request
the cost compared to other projects of similar nature, size and complexity that have been funded

*Note: All travel costs must reflect the most economic means available for transportation, accommodation and facilities. Compensation rates for vehicle use, meals, etc. must comply with applicant organization's standards, but cannot exceed federal government rates.

TIP! Download the Applicant Guide for more details

Fund eligibility and requirements

All applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

Lead applicant eligibility:

The lead applicant must be an active not-for-profit organization, registered charity, Indigenous government or Indigenous organization in Canada.
The lead applicant should be able to demonstrate how the organization engages in housing issues and their existing or proposed linkages to the housing sector.

*Note: Project partners and team members are not limited to these organizations. Lead applicants are encouraged to engage with collaborators in other sectors such as academia, private sector and municipal government.

Project eligibility:

The project must address one or more National Housing Strategy priority areas for action and vulnerable groups.
At the time of application, partner contributions totaling 25% of the total project cost must be confirmed. Letters from contributing project partners must be included with the application.
The project must not have been funded through the National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund in a previous competition year. Support will not be given to 1 applicant in 2 sequential years for the same project, event or identical activity.
Funding will only be provided for research projects or activities that will be carried out after the submission deadline.

CMHC requires all grant recipients to follow a structured reporting process:

Individual research projects and programs of research
- You must submit progress reports at 6 months intervals for the duration of the project and/or deliverables from key milestones.
- This must be followed by a final report within 2 months of the completion of the project.
Planning activities and knowledge mobilization projects
- You must submit a final report to CMHC within 2 months of the date of the activity in question.

The results of these reports provide CMHC with an opportunity to:

obtain information on the impact of the initiative
evaluate the impact of CMHC funding
advance knowledge transfer by providing selected information on the results of funded research and its partners to the research community and the public
standardize the capture, collection and analysis of information related to the results of funded research

As a grant recipient, you will report on:

Financial statements
- Provide all costs associated with the project, including staff and contractor salaries, equipment purchases and travel expenses.
Results and impact of the project or activity
- Include initial goals and an honest assessment of whether the initiative yielded the desired results.
Lessons learned
- Incorporate information on the project's major takeaways, including unexpected challenges and how these were addressed.

Application and approval process

We use a 2-stage selection process.

In Stage 1, applicants submit:

lead applicant’s and project partners’ information
a project summary
project objectives and outcomes
project relevance
estimated project cost

CMHC reviews and assesses Stage 1 applications. We invite qualified proponents to submit additional information in Stage 2.

In Stage 2, we’ll ask for:

a detailed budget
a statement of work
a knowledge and dissemination plan
a confirmation of partner in-kind/cash contributions

By submitting an application, you agree to the terms of the Applicant Guide and the terms and conditions provided in our online application portal.

The National Housing Strategy Research and Planning Fund review committee will evaluate all eligible applications. Government-based representatives form the review committee will assess applications according to the evaluation criteria and weighting outlined below. Only applications scoring 80% or higher in each of the criteria will be eligible for funding.

Individual research projects or programs of research:

concept and relevance of the project to National Housing Strategy priority areas for action and vulnerable groups: 25%
methodology and project management: 25%
knowledge exchange and/or dissemination: 25%
feasibility: 25%

*Note: For individual research projects and programs of research you need to include a detailed methodology. The methodology must be appropriate to the research question, project objectives, target population and budget.

Planning activities:

relevance to National Housing Strategy priority areas for action and vulnerable groups: 35%
activity objectives and format: 35%
knowledge exchange and/or dissemination: 15%
feasibility: 15%

Knowledge mobilization projects:

relevance to National Housing Strategy priority areas for action and vulnerable groups: 25%
knowledge mobilization objectives: 25%
suitability of knowledge mobilization product(s), channel(s) and audience(s): 25%
potential for impact: 25%

The evaluation processes for each of the Research and Data Initiatives are conducted independently.

Application timeline

The 2022 call for applications opened August 8, 2022.
Webinar detailing the competition: August 15, 2022.
Deadline to submit applications for Stage 1: September 16, 2022, by 2:00 p.m. (in the respective time zone of the lead applicant organization).
Deadline to submit applications for Stage 2 (for those applicants invited to submit): December 16, 2022.