Canadian Apartment Starts Expected to Decline Amid Economic Uncertainty
By: Monte Stewart, July 22, 2026 Canadian rental-apartment starts are expected to decline in all of 2026 as economic uncertainty, slower population growth, high borrowing costs and modest income growth weigh on overall housing demand, says a new report from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Rental construction will ease gradually from peak 2025 levels, said CMHC in a mid-year housing market outlook update. “Maintaining a sustainable level of new rental supply will be important to...
read moreVancouver multi-family sector faces correction as 24K new units hit the market
Market imbalance partly driven by volatile immigration policy, say experts By Jami Makan, Jul 17, 2026 Multi-family real estate in Vancouver is undergoing a major correction as a boom in inventory coincides with lower immigration and population, though some experts say the market could tighten back up toward the end of the decade. Nearly 24,000 rental units are expected to be delivered in the region over the next two years, adding significant supply and intensifying leasing competition,...
read moreMom-and-pop landlords outpacing big real estate investors: StatCan data
By Uday Rana Global News, Posted July 8, 2026 During the last decade, small-scale landlords have far outpaced institutional investors in Canada’s rental market, data from Statistics Canada shows. In the United States, the role of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) has come under scrutiny as large companies buy up large shares of the housing market, but the picture looks very different in Canada, Statistics Canada said. “Small-scale investors (individuals) owned the largest share of...
read moreGarry Marr: Why tracking the return to the office is no longer a thing in Toronto
The plan to discontinue the report comes amid realization that hybrid work is here to stay as office workers crave flexibility By Garry Marr, Published Jun 29, 2026 About half a decade and a global pandemic later, the Strategic Regional Research Alliance is looking to finally pull the plug on tracking whether people are occupying Toronto offices. There is little doubt occupancy has been going up since the pandemic ended, but the reality is that the trend has peaked, and some degree of...
read moreOver 2,100 Quebec households still looking for housing as July 1 approaches
By Caroline Plante, The Canadian Press and News Staff Last Updated June 28, 2026 With less than a week to go before July 1, 2,153 households were actively being assisted by a housing search service in Quebec, the Front d’action populaire en réaménagement urbain (FRAPRU) reported Thursday—more than at the same time last year. For Véronique Laflamme, spokesperson for FRAPRU, this situation is concerning, especially as housing vacancy rates have risen in several areas. “Housing units are being...
read moreWhy this developer thinks we need even more rental housing
Hazelview Investments’ Ugo Bizzarri has seen it all over his 30-year career in Canadian real estate. Here’s where he thinks the rental market is heading next By Garry Marr, Published Jun 15, 2026 A lifetime achievement award might be a signal to slow down, but Ugo Bizzarri doesn’t sound like he’s quite ready to retire just yet. Recognized with the Rental Housing Canada Lifetime Achievement award this month, the long-time developer recently handed over the daily reins at Hazelview...
read moreCanada rental market affordability splits along income lines, says CMHC
Mid-year update shows relief concentrating in high-end units, while lower-priced segments remain locked tight By Jhoanna Hines,10 Jun. 2026 New data on Canada rental market affordability shows a two-speed story. Increased supply and slower demand growth are easing conditions in the country’s largest cities. But the shift is being driven largely by higher-priced units sitting vacant longer, while lower-rent segments remain tight. That is the central finding of Canada Mortgage and Housing...
read moreOntario and Canada launch $8.8 billion development charge reduction program to boost housing supply
June 4, 2026 The Ontario and federal governments have opened applications for a new multi-billion-dollar program aimed at lowering the cost of building homes and accelerating housing development across municipalities. The Development Charge Reduction Program (DCRP), announced by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, is part of an up to $8.8 billion joint federal-provincial funding initiative designed to support housing-enabling infrastructure over a 10-year period. Under the program,...
read moreRegulatory Issues Hold Back Canadian Housing Starts
By: Monte Stewart, May 29, 2026 Regulatory barriers and structural factors have constrained Canada’s housing-supply responsiveness for almost two decades, according to new analysis from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. As result, housing starts have not kept pace with demand, and the roadblocks have contributed to higher home prices, CMHC Chief Economist Mathieu Laberge wrote in the report. CMHC found that if Canada’s housing industry had been as responsive as the U.S. housing...
read moreTownhomes in demand among investors as market shifts
Small supply, stable tenancies underpin investor interest Peter Mitham, May 22, 2026 With observers forecasting a shift in housing demand to units suitable for couples and families as federal immigration caps bite, multi-family investors are showing fresh appetite for townhouse properties in addition to apartment complexes. One of the latest examples is a collection of 536 units in Edmonton held by Boardwalk REIT that commercial brokerage Avison Young (Canada) Inc. brought to market earlier...
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