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C-20

HOUSEATREPORTSTAGE

45th Parliament · Session 1

Bill C-20: An Act respecting the establishment of Build Canada Homes

Build Canada Homes Act

Introduced

February 5, 2026

Current Stage

HouseAtReportStage

Last Updated

May 4, 2026

Sponsor

Gregor Robertson

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Bill C-20

Mon May 04 2026

An Act respecting the establishment of Build Canada Homes

Impact Rating

4/5

Short Summary

This bill creates a new federal housing corporation, Build Canada Homes, backed by $11.5 billion, to directly develop land, build affordable housing, and fund innovative construction methods.

Housing
Affordable Housing
Crown Corporation
Federal Spending
Construction

This bill establishes a new federal Crown corporation called Build Canada Homes to tackle the country's housing shortage. The corporation is mandated to increase the supply of affordable housing and promote faster, more innovative construction methods. It will have the power to develop land, construct homes directly, and provide financial assistance or loans to other housing organizations. To fund these operations, the government is authorizing up to $11.5 billion from public funds, signaling a major federal reentry into direct housing development.

Why does this bill exist?

Origin (Public Outcry/Event)

This bill is a direct response to Canada's severe affordable housing shortage and skyrocketing living costs.

  • Creates Build Canada Homes as a new federal Crown corporation with a board of directors and a CEO appointed by the government.

  • Grants the corporation powers to directly acquire land, build homes, and sell or lease property.

  • Authorizes up to $11.5 billion in federal funding to support the corporation's operations and housing development.

  • Allows the corporation to provide financial assistance, loans, and loan guarantees to other organizations building affordable housing.

  • Facilitates the transfer of public lands and assets from the Canada Lands Company to this new housing corporation.

  • Permits the corporation to borrow up to $400 million from outside sources to fund its purpose.

  • Promotes the collection and sharing of housing data with all levels of government to improve investment decisions.

Everyday Citizens and Renters

(Cheaper)

Will have access to a larger pool of affordable housing options if the corporation successfully builds new units.

Construction Workers

(Neutral)

May see new job opportunities on federally funded projects, though private sector demand could shift as a result.

Taxpayers

(More Expensive)

Will fund the $11.5 billion required to establish and operate the new Crown corporation.

Provincial Impact

Provincial Impact

Low (Information Sharing) Interaction

Provinces do not have to change their laws, but the new federal corporation will likely need to navigate provincial and municipal zoning laws to construct homes. The bill also explicitly allows the corporation to collaborate with provinces to collect and share housing data.

Benefits & Pros

Directly addresses the housing shortage by allowing the federal government to physically build homes and develop land.

Provides massive financial backing to stimulate affordable housing projects across the country.

Encourages innovative and efficient building techniques, which could modernize the construction industry and lower long-term costs.

Beneficiaries

Low and middle-income renters
Non-profit housing developers
Construction companies using innovative techniques
Municipalities needing housing investments

Risks & Cons

Requires a massive upfront public expenditure of up to $11.5 billion, heavily increasing government spending.

Direct government involvement in homebuilding might compete with or disrupt the private construction sector.

Creates a new bureaucratic entity which may take time to become efficient and operational at scale.

Affected Groups

Taxpayers funding the initial $11.5 billion capitalization
Private developers who may face competition from a government-backed builder

Before & After

Currently, the federal government mostly relies on funding private developers, provinces, or non-profits to build homes. Under this bill, the federal government establishes its own dedicated Crown corporation with $11.5 billion to directly develop land and build affordable housing itself.

Real World Scenario

Currently: Unused federal land sits idle because private developers find it unprofitable to build affordable housing there. Under this Bill: The new Build Canada Homes corporation could directly take over that land, hire builders, and construct an affordable apartment complex itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sponsor

Gregor Robertson

Member of Parliament

House of Commons

First reading

Completed on February 5, 2026

Second reading

Completed on March 13, 2026

Consideration in committee

Completed on May 4, 2026

Report stage

Not yet started

Third reading

Not yet started

Senate

First reading

Not yet started

Second reading

Not yet started

Third reading

Not yet started

Abuse Potential

The bill grants the federal cabinet broad powers to issue operational directives to the new corporation and Canada Lands Company Limited. Notably, the bill exempts these directives from the Statutory Instruments Act, meaning they do not go through standard parliamentary publication and oversight. A future government could theoretically use this loophole to secretly or rapidly force the sale, transfer, or acquisition of highly valuable public land to favored private entities without public scrutiny. Furthermore, because the corporation has the power to issue loans and financial assistance, vague criteria could allow funds to be channeled to politically connected developers under the guise of affordable housing investments.

Implementation Risk

Scaling up a special operating agency into a massive Crown corporation with an $11.5 billion budget is logistically complex. Finding available land, navigating local zoning laws, and hiring skilled trades in an already constrained labour market could cause severe delays and budget overruns.

Broad Economic Impact

Direct Cost/Benefit. It injects up to $11.5 billion of public money into the construction sector to create more housing supply.

Everyday Life

Moderate impact. It will not change your daily routine, but it aims to significantly alter the availability of housing over the long term.

Admin Burden

Automatic. No new forms for regular citizens, though construction businesses will interact heavily with the corporation.

Timeline

Phased in over several years as the corporation is fully established, acquires land, and begins construction.