Build Canada Homes Proposal Step-By-Step Guide

Build Canada Homes Proposal Step-By-Step Guide (PDF Version)

• Copyright

  © His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure, 2025.

  Cat. No. T94-110/2025E-PDF
  ISBN 978-0-660-79855-4

Important tips when preparing your proposal

You are encouraged to gather information and prepare your responses to the following questions in advance of submitting your proposal.

To edit or delete information that is displayed in table format, click on the  icon and select either edit or delete.

Unless otherwise noted, the maximum character count for questions requiring a narrative answer (text box) is 3,000 characters.

Frequently, click Save to save your answers. This allows you to pause and resume work on your proposal without losing any information.

Questions marked with a red asterisk (*) are required and will need to be completed to validate and submit your proposal.

Once you have completed all questions in each section, click Validate. In addition to saving your work, this will verify that you have submitted all required information, and the tab at the top of the page will turn green.

All sections must be validated to submit your proposal to Build Canada Homes.

Important

Proponents who are unable to submit a complete proposal through the portal are asked to reach out at this address: BCHInquiries-DemandesMC@infc.gc.ca.

You are required to register for a Build Canada Homes Portal Account to receive communications and updates on your proposal. If this is an issue, please contact us as soon as possible.

Participation in Build Canada Homes does not exempt proponents from provincial, territorial or municipal legislative, regulatory and permitting obligations. Proponents are responsible for meeting any jurisdictional requirements, including securing necessary authorizations before entering into an agreement with the Government of Canada.

Proponent identification

Organization information

Most of the information from this section will be prefilled with the information you provided when you created your Build Canada Homes Portal Account. 

Organization contacts

Please provide primary and secondary contacts for the purposes of Build Canada Homes communicating with your organization or business about the proposed project.

If your organization's primary or secondary contact is different from the contact who will be leading your proposal, please create a new contact profile by clicking Add a Contact. This will add a contact to your organization's profile.

Organization location

Please provide the address of your organization.

Organizational type

Which eligibility criteria for organization type does your organization fulfil? A list of valid organization types is provided, please select one.

Proponent status

Is your organization the proponent organization? If not, you will be asked to provide information to link your proposal to another organization as the proponent.

Organization tenure

You will be asked when your organization was established.

Reminder

Once you have completed all questions in a section, click Validate. In addition to saving your work, this will verify that you have submitted all of the required information, and the tab at the top of the page will turn green.

All sections must be validated in order to submit your proposal to Build Canada Homes.

Proposal identification

Proposal details

You will be asked to provide a title for your proposal. This may be made public in the future, so please select a title your organization is comfortable with being publicly associated with and that is suitable for use in future communications with your organization.

You will also be asked to indicate if your organization's proposal supports the development of a portfolio of properties and the type of housing that will be delivered, from a list of eligible options. If your proposal includes multiple properties, or mixed-use properties, you will be also be required to provide the percentage of non-residential space within the proposal as a whole.

You will be asked to provide the number and type of units that will be constructed as part of your proposal, were a project to be started. All text boxes must be completed, with a number, and “0” must be added when zero units of a type are planned. You will also be asked to provide information on the affordability of the units, the duration of your commitment to affordability and percentage breakdown of types of units.

Finally, you will be required to provide information on your organization's capacity and experience in housing projects specific to development management experience, and residential property management experience. If your organization does not have experience in these areas, you will be asked to indicate whether a third party would be contracted to provide these services.

Project location

Please indicate the addresses of all buildings  planned for construction as part of your proposal. If you have created unique names for specific parts of your development, please include that information.

You will be asked to indicate whether buildings are located in rural, remote, northern, or Indigenous communities.

Construction timelines

You will be asked to indicate the planned timelines for construction in your proposal and whether a project is “Occupancy Ready”, “Shovel Ready” or an “Early-Stage” proposal. An “Occupancy Ready” proposal must be ready for individuals or families to occupy the units within 12 months. A “Shovel Ready” proposal must be ready to start construction within 12 months. An “Early-Stage” proposal is one that would start construction in a period greater than 12 months.

You will also be required to provide construction timelines as well as the expected date of occupancy. Please enter specific dates to respond to both questions.

Note: Only “Shovel Ready” construction proposals (ready to start within 12 months) are being considered at this time. For a portfolio of projects, at least one part of the proposal must be able to start construction within 12 months.

Additional information

As part of the collection of additional information relating to your proposal, you will be asked several questions seeking to add precision to your proposal, and to allow for proposals to be effectively evaluated.

Land tenure

You will be asked whether you currently own the land on which construction will take place. You will be asked to indicate the land ownership type in place for your organization. Please select all types that apply.

If you do not currently own the land on which construction will take place you will be asked whether you have an outstanding offer to purchase the parcel of land, and what type of land ownership type would be in place for that plot. Please select all types that apply.

Construction methods

You will be asked if your proposal includes the integration of Modern Methods of Construction.

You will be asked if your proposal includes a commitment to prioritize the integration of Canadian-sourced materials, like wood, steel and aluminum, and if yes, how these products will be integrated along with any firm commitments made.

In addition, you will be asked if your proposal includes a commitment to prioritize the integration of Canadian softwood lumber or other Canadian forest-sector products and if yes, how these products will be integrated along with any firm commitments made.

Supportive and transitional housing

Supportive and Transitional Housing remains a focus for Build Canada Homes and addressing chronic homelessness. You will be asked whether your proposal includes transitional or supportive housing for individuals experiencing or at imminent risk of homelessness. If supportive or transitional housing units are planned, you will be asked whether wrap-around services and ongoing operational finances have been secured.

If ongoing operational finances or wrap-around services have not been secured, you will be asked whether you have plans to secure these elements within 12 months.

Your organization will be asked to provide a description of, and identify the duration (i.e. number of years), of funding that has been secured to provide wrap-around supports, and ongoing operations and maintenance costs. This description can be up to 3,000 characters and should include specific information, dates, and descriptions of services or contracts wherever possible.

Supportive and Transitional Housing spaces should be connected to the local homelessness-serving system in the community. Your organization will be asked to describe, in 3,000 characters or fewer, your plan to connect to the local homelessness-serving system. Please provide clear, specific dates, contacts or contracts, steps and timelines wherever possible.

Construction materials

You will be asked to provide a description of how your proposal will contribute to climate resiliency and energy efficiency objectives as described within The Canada Green Buildings Strategy. Please be as specific as possible and provide examples.

In addition, please explain how the project aligns with Canada's Nature Strategy by protecting natural features, avoiding sensitive areas, reducing climate-related risks, using nature-based design solutions, or engaging Indigenous partners where appropriate. Canada's Nature Strategy focuses on protecting natural areas, reducing climate risks, and working respectfully with Indigenous communities. Your proposal can align with the Strategy by choosing smarter sites, keeping important natural features, using nature-based designs (trees, green space, drainage), and engaging Indigenous partners early when land has cultural or ecological significance.

Other examples of how your proposal can align with the strategy:

• Build on infill or already-developed land first, not untouched green space.
• Check the site for flood risk, wildfire risk, and important natural features before designing.
• Keep or add trees, green space, and natural drainage to reduce runoff and heat.
• Work with Indigenous communities early if the land has cultural or ecological importance.
• Maintain or create green spaces, keeping or planting trees, and addressing issues around flooding and erosion.

Overview

You will be asked to provide a 3,000 character overview of your proposal. This is an opportunity to share context, narrative or other information that has not been captured in your responses to initial questions. You may choose to highlight your organization's vision, anticipated impact, or unique considerations clarifying the overall value and intent of the project, including the case for the involvement of Build Canada Homes investments in your project.

Some key elements you may want to consider including in your overview:

1. Outline the objectives of your project
2. Project activities
3. Expected results of the project
4. Milestones
5. Does the project include results measurement indicators?
6. Does this proposed project fit with your organization's other activities?
7. Is your project designed to benefit people living within Official Language minority communities?
8. Does your project strengthen capacity in the non-market housing sector through high-quality, collaborative partnerships with mission driven organizations, such as Indigenous housing providers and groups supporting women, people with disabilities, and other equity-deserving populations?
9. Does your project take place on Federal Lands and include activities that are listed in the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) Physical Activities Regulations established under the Impact Assessment Act?

Reminder

Once you have completed all questions in a section, click Validate. In addition to saving your work, this will verify that you have submitted all of the required information, and the tab at the top of the page will turn green.

All sections must be validated in order to submit your proposal to Build Canada Homes.

Investment details

You will be asked to detail the amount of financial support needed by the activities detailed in your proposal and that would be requested should a project be supported by Build Canada Homes. You will also be asked to describe the purpose and use of financial investments needed to realize this proposal.

The total cost of construction is required, in addition to potential contributions from Build Canada Homes. This should include all “hard” and “soft” costs, in dollars.

Build Canada Homes uses the information provided in this section to verify that your request conforms to any future stacking limit or requirement for financial resources from other sources.

Pre-development costs may be considered eligible. Please indicate whether pre-development costs are included in your estimated budget.

Finally, you will be asked to complete a table detailing anticipated investments from other sources. For each source, enter a name, and indicate whether the Source Type is Capital or Operational. You will be prompted for a “Sub-Type” for each source.

For Capital funding sources, funding sub-types may be:

• Financing
• Grant
• In-Kind Contribution
• Forgivable Loan
• Waiver of Development Charges and Fees
• Other

For Operational finance sources, sub-types may be:

• Rent Supplement
• Operating Subsidy
• Property Tax Waiver
• In-Kind Contribution
• Other

For each source, please enter unconfirmed amounts in the first column following sub-type identification and confirmed amounts in the final column.

Reminder

Once you have completed all questions in a section, click Validate. In addition to saving your work, this will verify that you have submitted all of the required information, and the tab at the top of the page will turn green.

All sections must be validated in order to submit your proposal to Build Canada Homes.

Supporting documents

All supporting documents must be uploaded through the portal at the time you submit your proposal. Documents cannot be added after submission. Proposals missing any required documents will be rejected as incomplete and will not move forward in the review process.

Please refer to the Required Document list for further information on the documents required at intake and future stages of the proposal process to ensure your submission is complete. Ensure each file is clearly named and matches the required document type. For portfolios, provide complete documentation for every shovel-ready project included.

Validation status

Each section of your proposal requires validation before submitting to Build Canada Homes. Once validated, each section will turn green.

If there is a section that remains red, please go back to that section and confirm all required information is present and select Validate.

Privacy and attestation

Read the “Privacy and Information Sharing” notice statement and select Yes to confirm you have read the statement.

Select Next to proceed with the attestation. In the text boxes provided, please include:

• Your Name
• Your Position within the Organization
• Name of Organization

Using the checkbox, please select I confirm followed by Attest to complete your attestation.

If you wish to modify your proposal before submitting, select Cancel attestation.

Select Submit to send your proposal to Build Canada Homes. At this point you will no longer be able to make modifications to your proposal.

Status updates relating to your proposal will be available on the Build Canada Homes Portal.