For the three months ending September 30, 2024, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation insured 64,979 multi-unit residential units, according to its third quarter report. Of those, 29,878 were new construction, marking a 26% increase of over 51,443 units during the same period in 2023.
"Facilitating the construction of purpose-built rentals remains a key factor in tackling the country’s housing supply and affordability challenges,” Michel Tremblay, the CMHC’s CFO and senior vice-president of corporate services, said in a statement.
“We are pleased to see such consistent and increasing uptake in our multi-unit insurance products, which are an important factor in supporting the creation of rental supply in Canada."
The CMHC attributes these increases to its MLI Select product, which allows for longer amortizations and higher loan to value, accessibility and climate compatibility.
Quarterly findings
In total, the CMHC insured 206,157 units through its multi-unit products in the first three quarters of 2024, up from 156,419 during the same period in 2023. Insured volumes totaled $47,624 million in the first three quarters of 2024, up from $29,911 million during the same period last year – a 59% increase.
However, high house prices and interest rates continue to impact transactional homeowner unit volumes with 13,749 units insured in Q3 2024, down from 15,623 in Q3 2023.
Arrears for mortgages insured by the CMHC remain low at 0.30% which is below historical levels, resulting in low levels of claims paid.
Mortgage reforms
During Q3, the Canadian government announced a series of reforms to mortgage rules in the country. They include increasing the $1 million price cap for insured mortgages to $1.5 million, effective December 15, to help more Canadians qualify for a mortgage with a downpayment below 20%.
The new rules also include expanding eligibility for 30-year mortgage amortizations to all first-time homebuyers and to all buyers of new builds, effective December 15, to reduce the cost of monthly mortgage payments and help more Canadians buy a home.
Additionally, starting Janurary 15, homeowners will be able to refinance their insured mortgages to access the equity in their homes and help pay for the construction of a secondary suite.
The CMHC’s Co-Op Housing Development Program launched in Q3. Starting this year, the program will provide $1.5 billion in loans to support the development of affordable rental co-operative housing units in Canada. CMHC will fund up to 100% of the eligible project costs, on residential space and up to 75% of eligible non-residential project costs.
This article Multi-unit residential mortgages increase in Q3 2024 originally appeared on Money.ca
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