BURNABY, BC, July 28, 2026 /CNW/ -- Far too many Canadians are struggling to find homes they can afford. Solving Canada's housing crisis requires immediate action to bring down costs, cut red tape, and build homes more quickly. The Government of Canada is stepping up with a bold new approach to build affordable housing across the country. We are focused on building great neighbourhoods that Canadians want to, and can afford to live in.

Central to that work, the Government of Canada has launched Build Canada Homes, which is helping increase the pace of affordable homebuilding. Build Canada Homes is also helping fight homelessness by building transitional and supportive housing – working with provinces, territories, municipalities, and Indigenous communities. It is building deeply affordable and community housing for low-income households, and partnering with private market developers to build affordable homes for the Canadian middle class.

As part of the Government of Canada's broader efforts to respond to the housing crisis, investments are being made across the housing continuum to respond to the needs of communities across Canada.

Today, the federal government, announced over $29 million in funding through the Canada Greener Affordable Homes program and the Affordable Housing Fund to help update and retrofit 284 rental homes in three projects in Burnaby. The announcement was made at Post 83, a non-profit co-operative housing project located at 4221 Mayberry Street. Retrofits and upgrades planned for this building include new high-performance windows, doors, roofing and insulation, upgraded heating, cooling and ventilation systems, modernized elevators, energy-efficient lighting, and rooftop solar panels. In addition to reduced energy costs, many of these upgrades will also result in greater comfort and safety for residents during extreme weather events with improved heating, cooling and air circulation within their homes.

The announcement was made by Wade Chang, Member of Parliament for Burnaby Central, on behalf of the Honourable Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada, alongside Monika Morgan, Executive Director, Community Land Trust.  

The Government of Canada is making the housing investments that will help strengthen Canadian supply chains and create good jobs at every step of the homebuilding process – helping to build more homes and a stronger Canadian economy at the same time.

Quotes:

"Our Government is committed to helping communities reduce energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions, while upgrading and repairing their aging affordable housing stock. This project will help make more than 280 homes in Burnaby more sustainable, affordable, and comfortable for future generations." – Wade Chang, Member of Parliament for Burnaby Central

"We've worked closely with CMHC, our consultants and the co-op to make these upgrades feasible, extending the lifespan of existing buildings is crucial to housing affordability. By making energy-efficient upgrades we're able to make these homes more sustainable and reduce energy costs for residents" –Monica Morgan, Executive Director, Community Land Trust

Quick Facts:

• The Canada Greener Affordable Housing Program (CGAH) provided $1.2 billion to make multi-unit rental housing serving low- and moderate-income households more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.
  • CGAH was a financing program to help community housing providers complete deep energy retrofits on their multi-unit residential buildings, improving their quality and adapting homes to the effects of climate change and extreme weather events leading to deep reductions in energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
  • CGAH provided contributions for pre-retrofit activities needed to plan, prepare, and apply for retrofit funding as well as forgivable and low-interest loans to help finance building retrofits and activities needed to meet climate objectives. The application portal is now closed as all funding has been committed.
• The Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) provided funding through low-interest and/or forgivable loans or contributions to partnered organizations for new affordable housing and the renovation and repair of existing, affordable and community housing. This was a $16.1 billion program under the National Housing Strategy (NHS) that gave priority to projects that help people who need it most, including women and children fleeing family violence, seniors, Indigenous Peoples, people living with disabilities, those with mental health or addiction issues, Veterans, and young adults. The application portal for AHF is now closed as all funding has been committed.
  • As of March 2026, the Government of Canada has committed $15.83 billion to support the creation of over 61,700 units and the repair of over 174,700 units through the Affordable Housing Fund.
• On September 19, 2025, the Government of Canada announced $1.5 billion top-up in loans for the AHF's New Construction Stream, to support the creation of over 5,000 new units starting in 2025-26. Additionally, the AHF's Rapid Housing Sub-Stream will be accelerated, by pulling $385 million in funding from future years.
• Funding provided for 4221 Mayberry Street includes:
  • $24 million from the federal government, through the Canada Greener Affordable Housing program
  • $1.8 million from the Community Land Trust

Additional Information:

• Visit canada.ca/housing for the most-requested Government of Canada housing information. 
• Build Canada Homes is ready to partner with organizations committed to increasing the supply of affordable housing across Canada. Learn more about the portal and the Investment Policy Framework.
• Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is a federal Crown corporation and the foundation of Canada's housing system. For over 80 years, CMHC has supported the functioning of housing markets across the country through housing finance solutions — including mortgage loan insurance and securitization — while providing trusted, unbiased data, research and market intelligence to inform policy and decision making. Through its national presence, deep expertise in housing economics and finance, and a system-wide perspective, CMHC helps foster a more stable, well-functioning housing market that supports households, communities and the broader economy.
• Follow us on X, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.

Funding provided for the other projects includes:

SOURCE Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)