CMHC Says There Is Need To Work With Partners At All Levels Of Government & Private Sectors

OTTAWA: The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has released its 2021 Annual Report, demonstrating that to overcome challenges in Canada’s housing landscape we need to continue working with partners from all levels of government, organizations and the private sector.

For many Canadians 2021 was a difficult year. As the pandemic persisted and families continued to rely on the sanctuary of their homes, far too many — especially racialized and Indigenous people, still struggled to find suitable housing they could afford. Others were displaced by extreme climate events. Housing affordability remains a top concern for all Canadians and for the federal government. Throughout this challenging year, CMHC continued to deliver.

“It’s a critical time in housing. We recognize that there are many challenges, and the environment is complex. Our hard work has earned us the continued confidence of Canadians. Our impressive results from last year bring us closer to our aspiration of housing affordability for all by 2030, but we still have a long way to go,” said Romy Bowers, CMHC’s President and CEO. “I want to emphasize that everything we’ve accomplished has been made possible by working with our partners, and we will continue to build on these impactful relationships.”

Nearly one-third of all new investments in the 2022 federal budget are for housing, mainly building on the success of the National Housing Strategy (NHS). These investments will benefit from the expertise of CMHC.

“Budget 2021, and Budget 2022, confirmed that the Government of Canada will continue to look to CMHC to support Canadians,” said Michel Tremblay, CMHC’s Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President, Corporate Services. “We will continue to prudently manage the public resources entrusted to us, for the benefit of all Canadians.”

Annual Report highlights as at December 31, 2021:

• Our revenues from commercial activities and government funding totaled $6.3 billion in 2021. That number decreased by $1.2 billion from 2020, mainly due to the end of funding received in 2020 for the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program, to help deliver Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan.

• Revenue from our commercial activities, Mortgage Insurance and Mortgage Funding, was $2.5 billion, generating a net income of $1.8 billion from commercial activities, and a total net income of $1.9 billion in 2021.

• In 2021, we resumed the payment of dividends to the Government of Canada, after temporarily suspending them in 2020. This was a prudent measure to conserve capital due to economic uncer

tainty caused by the pandemic. In 2021, we paid $5.1 billion in dividends.

• In 2021, our homeowner insurance products helped homebuyers purchase over 73,000 housing units across Canada, with just over 17% insured in rural areas of Canada.

• All levels of government, along with private and non-profit developers across the country have worked with CMHC to seize the opportunities that the National Housing Strategy offers. As a result, the organization has exceeded its targets on all NHS programs.

More than $19 billion was committed by the end of 2021 to build and repair more than 174,500 units and counting.

• The Rapid Housing Initiative is one example of the impact of partnerships: in 2021, we launched the second round of this program to create urgently needed housing for those most affected by COVID-19.

Cities, provinces, Indigenous governing bodies and non-profits mobilized behind it, resulting in more than 10,000 new rapidly created units of permanent affordable housing across the country.

• As well, nearly $22 billion in new funding was committed to finance affordable housing projects over the next decade, thanks largely to private sector partners.

•In 2021, CMHC also worked on strengthening our relationships with people made vulnerable. New mechanisms like the National Housing Council, the Indigenous Advisory Council, and community engagement with equity-deserving groups are helping to amplify the voices of people with lived experience of housing need and homelessness. “This will help us work together to shape a housing system that is more inclusive and equitable,” the report said.

• CMHC said it will also continue to strengthen and roll out its climate change strategy.

CMHC CEO & president Romy Bowers has talked about how affordable and sustainable #housing leads to inclusive communities and a stronger economy—and how we can all work together to improve housing across Canada.

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 objective housing research and information to Canadian governments, consumers and the housing industry.