The 2025 federal budget places housing supply and affordability firmly at the centre of Canada’s economic agenda. With expanded financing tools for purpose-built rentals, faster project approvals and new initiatives aimed at easing barriers to homeownership, the federal government is once again signalling that housing is a national priority. Notably, the budget identifies housing as one of Canada’s key capital investment areas, ranking just behind infrastructure, productivity and competitiveness, and defense and security.
Yet despite this renewed commitment, the structural challenges facing the housing market remain deeply entrenched. Construction costs have risen sharply since the pandemic, with residential building costs now approximately 58% higher than in 2020, far outpacing overall inflation. As noted by Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada, this cost escalation continues to pressure project viability, with tariffs and supply-chain constraints expected to add further upward pressure.
These challenges are compounded by persistent skilled labour shortages across the trades, restrictive zoning frameworks, inconsistent incentive structures and longstanding productivity constraints within the construction sector.
While the federal budget addresses several of these issues, public funding and traditional bank financing alone cannot close the gap at the pace required to materially improve housing supply.
In this environment, private mortgage lenders are playing an increasingly vital role. By delivering flexible, responsive financing solutions, private capital is helping move projects forward where traditional channels often fall short.
A Policy Backdrop That Strengthens the Investment Case
The federal government’s emphasis on accelerating housing supply underscores a longer-term reality: meaningful progress will require sustained participation from private capital. Policy can set direction and unlock incentives, but execution on the ground depends on access to dependable, flexible and timely financing.
Canada’s private mortgage market has become a critical source of funding for the housing sector, serving a growing segment of borrowers and developers who fall outside conventional bank lending criteria.
Today, alternative and private lenders account for a meaningful share of new mortgage originations nationwide, particularly in construction, redevelopment and transitional financing. This segment continues to expand as elevated interest rates, tighter bank regulations and evolving underwriting standards push more qualified borrowers toward private mortgage solutions.
Although private mortgage solutions are expanding nationwide, adoption has been especially pronounced in Ontario. According to a 2024 report from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario, private mortgages accounted for 16.8% of the total number of mortgage transactions and 13.3% of total mortgage value in Ontario in 2023, underscoring the growing role of private lenders in meeting borrower demand amid tighter traditional lending conditions.
For private mortgage investors, this creates a compelling opportunity. The alignment between public policy objectives and private lending strategies reinforces the role of private mortgages as part of the solution to Canada’s housing shortage and a source of stable, risk-adjusted returns.
Through CMI’s mortgage investment platform, investors are positioned to participate directly in this shift, helping to finance responsibly structured residential mortgages that address housing needs while maintaining disciplined investment standards.
How CMI Supports Investors in a Shifting Landscape
Federal housing policy is increasingly shaping the Canadian mortgage market, creating both challenges and opportunities. Programs targeting homeownership, increasing supply, or supporting specific borrower segments can influence demand, credit availability and market activity. Access to deal flow alone isn’t enough — investors also need disciplined underwriting, rigorous risk management and clear insight into how market conditions may impact performance. CMI’s platform is designed to provide all three.
Policy-informed investment strategy
CMI focuses exclusively on residential mortgages, structuring loans that respond to borrower needs in a market shaped by evolving policy and economic conditions. Government measures, such as programs aimed at expanding housing supply or supporting first-time buyers, can influence where demand emerges and with which specific borrower segments. By staying attuned to these shifts while maintaining disciplined underwriting, CMI helps channel private capital into responsible residential financing that supports housing needs and delivers strong risk-adjusted opportunities for investors.
Disciplined risk management
Protecting investor capital is central to everything we do. In a market shaped by ongoing economic uncertainty, risk discipline matters more than ever in private mortgage investing. At CMI, conservative loan-to-value ratios, robust underwriting standards and active portfolio oversight using data-driven tools to assess and manage risk are central to protecting investor capital across market cycles. By focusing on fundamentals and leveraging technology to strengthen oversight and decision-making, we continue to fund quality mortgages while managing both market and borrower risks effectively.
Actionable insight and transparency
Investors benefit from clear reporting and ongoing market commentary that translate federal housing and economic policies into practical, actionable insights. For instance, updates on government incentives for new builds or changes in mortgage regulations, like the mortgage stress test, help investors understand how policy may affect borrower demand, credit availability, and return potential. Coupled with regular portfolio updates and performance reporting, this transparency enables investors to see how CMI’s disciplined approach helps deliver stable, risk-conscious performance even as market conditions evolve.
What This Means for Investors
The 2025 federal budget confirms that housing is not a short-term policy initiative but a defining economic priority for years to come. While government programs will play a role, private mortgage capital will remain essential to translating these ambitions into homes, rental units and completed projects.
For accredited and institutional investors, this environment presents a rare convergence of public need and private opportunity. Through CMI’s whole mortgage investment platform, private mortgage investors can participate in Canada’s housing expansion in a way that is both socially constructive and financially disciplined.
With nearly $4 billion in successful mortgage placements to date, CMI Mortgage Investments brings institutional-grade underwriting, diversified real estate exposure and disciplined risk management to a sector that continues to expand in both scale and relevance.
To learn more about our whole-loan mortgage investment opportunities, schedule a consultation with one of our experts today.
