Canada launches second round of Housing Supply Challenge

Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home.

Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and Minister Responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), and Adam Vaughan, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and Minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), announced $40 million in funding for “Getting Started”, the second round of the Housing Supply Challenge (HSC), which will be launched on June 9, 2021.

The Housing Supply Challenge invites local solutions from across Canada that improve affordable housing pre-development processes from idea to shovel, and everything in between!

For the “Getting Started” round, the following organizations are encouraged to apply:

• For-profit and not-for-profit organizations
• Indigenous organizations and groups
• Canadian post secondary institutions
• Government (provincial, territorial, Indigenous, municipal, local and regional)
• Teams composed of a variety of participants

*All applicants must be affiliated with a legally incorporated organization

The Housing Supply Challenge is being delivered by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Future rounds of the five-year challenge will tackle additional issues related to housing supply, including Northern Housing, Construction Technology, Scaling Solutions, and Public Perception of New Development.

More information about the Housing Supply Challenge is available on our website.

Quotes:

“Every Canadian deserves a home that meets their needs and they can afford. Increasing the supply of housing requires innovative and disruptive thinking. The Housing Supply Challenge will bring forward the best new ideas and turn them into realities that can address housing supply issues in Canada.”

“Our government believes everyone in Canada deserves the dignity of a place to call home. We know that local barriers call for local solutions. The Housing Supply Challenge will help communities to find the solution that works for them.”

“Hard working Canadians need homes that meet their needs and that they can afford. Building housing that’s more affordable takes time, and navigating the approval process and construction takes time and costs money too. This $40 million in Government of Canada funding will enable local solutions from across Canada address this challenge. Solutions that improve and reduce pre-development processing time will help proponents move from idea to shovel quicker. Every dollar saved makes housing more affordable.”

Quick facts:

• The COVID-19 crisis means that communities across the country are dealing with the devastating impacts of rising levels of homelessness and housing need. Canada needs more housing supply, but there is no single solution to address this need.
• To help municipalities grow their housing supply, Budget 2019 provided $300 million in funding over five years to launch a Housing Supply Challenge and unlock new solutions for Canadians searching for an affordable place to call home.
• The Challenge aims to provide new resources and find solutions to enhance housing supply and provide a platform to share these models with communities across Canada.
• The Challenge will also help address barriers to housing supply and affordability, showcase new ideas and solutions, and cultivate collaboration and partnerships.
• The Challenge is a component of Impact Canada, a Government of Canada-wide initiative to help departments accelerate the adoption of innovative funding approaches to deliver meaningful results to Canadians.
• The Housing Supply Challenge is being delivered by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
• The first round, Data Driven, has shortlisted 21 applicants who have proposed innovative solutions to address gaps in housing data (see attached backgrounder).
• These participants will create technology or methodology-based solutions to improve data collection, sharing, analysis and integration, thus improving decision-making on housing supply.
• The first round will disburse up to $25 million to fund a variety of new solutions.
• The second round, Getting Started, will:
  • Identify, develop and implement solutions to barriers in the development of housing that is affordable
  • Empower local stakeholders to identify and solve the unique housing development challenges in their area
  • Stimulate collaboration, knowledge sharing and partnerships to influence housing development at the local, provincial/ territorial, and federal level
• Future rounds of the five-year challenge will tackle additional issues related to housing supply including:
  • Northern Housing (Fall 2021)
  • Construction Technology (2022)
  • Scaling Solutions (2022)
  • Public Perception of New Development (2023)
• CMHC has partnered with Evergreen on a support program to help applicants develop the most impactful solutions.
• The Challenge aligns with the National Housing Strategy and CMHC’s goal, that by 2030 everyone in Canada has a home they can afford and that meets their needs.

Associated links:

As Canada’s authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. For more information, follow us on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

To find out more about the National Housing Strategy, visit www.placetocallhome.ca.

Information on this release:

Mikaela Harrison
Office of the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development
mikaela.harrison@hrsdc-rhdcc.gc.ca

Media Relations
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)
media@cmhc.ca

Backgrounder: Shortlisted applicants, first round, data driven

Find further details on these solutions.