Canada's 2026 budget pledges $45 billion for Build Canada Homes and a goal to end homelessness in ten years
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Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced a $45 billion capitalization for the Crown corporation Build Canada Homes, aiming to deliver 200,000 new homes and eliminate homelessness within a decade.
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne tabled the 2026 federal budget on Thursday, outlining a three-part housing strategy that includes a target to end homelessness within ten years, a plan to triple non-market housing construction, and measures to modernise the housing market. The budget earmarks $45 billion in total for the newly created Crown corporation Build Canada Homes (BCH), with an expectation that the entity will deliver 200,000 new homes across Canada over the next decade. At least 10 per cent of BCH’s funding is designated for Indigenous housing projects.
"Tonight, thousands of Canadians will sleep in shelters or on the street, with none of the security or stability that adequate housing provides. We can do better. We must do better. And we will do better," Champagne said in the House of Commons.
The budget also creates a $1.8 billion Integrated Supports Fund under BCH to finance transitional and supportive housing that combines health, addiction and social services. An additional $3.6 billion will be provided for capital costs of these units, with provinces and territories expected to fund operations and wrap-around services.
Funding for existing programs such as the Reaching Home initiative and the Veterans Homelessness Program will be renewed for another ten years, with $2.1 billion allocated to the Housing Department for this purpose. The government will require “rigorous reporting” on program outcomes.
To accelerate non-market housing, the budget proposes to triple the annual start rate to 24,000 units, providing BCH with $13 billion over ten years beginning in 2028-29. An additional $1.5 billion is set aside for infrastructure such as water and roads on federal land to enable new development.
Other measures include extending the ban on foreign homebuyers until January 2029, adjusting mortgage-insurance rules to support “missing-middle” homes, and allocating $22 billion over five years for broader affordability initiatives, including a one-time top-up to the GST credit and increased funding for Nutrition North Canada.
The budget also proposes changes to the Canada Workers Benefit, temporary increases to Employment Insurance weeks for apprentices, and making the Canada Caregiver Credit refundable, measures aimed at reducing poverty and supporting vulnerable households.