Balvir Singh

From CMHC Canada faces a housing affordability challenge. For many years, housing prices and rents in Vancouver and Toronto attracted attention from all over the world. Over time, these increases came to burden many Canadians and their children. Low-income and some middle-class households struggle to even find a place to live, let alone at a price they can afford. On a wider scale, the productivity of the Canadian economy suffers from unaffordable housing as the capacity to attract skilled workers is diminished and the young are deterred from staying in our largest cities partly because of the lack of attainable housing. And Canadas enormous level of household debt creates a vulnerability in the event of a global economic crisis. Preview of results We find that housing starts need to double over the next decade. Compared to a projected rate of about 250,000 new housing units annually until 2035, Canada needs to increase housing starts to around 430,000 to 480,000 units per year to restore affordability (depending on parameters). This can only be possible with: a significantly greater workforce more private-sector investment changes in technology and productivity such as more automation and modular construction The need to increase housing supply remains critical. https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/professionals/housing-markets-data-and-research/housing-research/research-reports/accelerate-supply/canadas-housing-supply-shortages-a-new-framework

Highlights Mortgage lenders entered 2025 in a healthy position, but economic uncertainty is increasing risk to the residential mortgage market. At the household level, unemployment is the most common cause of late mortgage payments. Variable rate mortgages became the most popular mortgage type in early 2025, reaching 42% of new mortgages in February, as the premium for variable-rate mortgages largely disappeared. Terms between 3 and less than 5 years were also still popular with new borrowers (32%). This speeds up the impact of future interest rate changes on borrower payments. New borrowers have taken advantage of lower interest rates to reduce their monthly payments. They havent shortened their amortization periods to the levels prior to the increase in interest rates. Mortgage lending by the largest alternative lenders outpaced the growth of national mortgage credit in 2024. These lenders risk profile has increased moderately due to higher delinquency rates, leading them to increase their loan loss allowance. https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/professionals/housing-markets-data-and-research/housing-research/research-reports/housing-finance/residential-mortgage-industry-report