CMHC insurance is usually the single biggest lever on apartment and multi-unit financing, and the program choices are genuinely complex. There are several programs, a points system, premium and amortization trade-offs, and CMHC reviews every file. You do not need to untangle it alone. Use this guide to understand the landscape, then let us position you: we model your numbers, match you to the right program and lender, and make the complexity work in your favour.
This guide covers multi-unit residential properties of five or more units, which is the commercial multi-unit world: apartment buildings, mixed-use with several residential units, purpose-built rental, and similar. It is where CMHC's multi-unit programs, longer amortizations, and higher leverage live.
If your property is 1 to 4 units, that is residential financing, a different process with its own CMHC homeowner and small-rental insurance, and it is covered in our residential resources, not here. The line at five units is a real one: a five-unit building is underwritten as commercial multi-unit, with different documents, ratios, and options than a four-unit. If you are near that line, that alone is worth a quick call.
On a building of five or more units, CMHC mortgage loan insurance is what unlocks the best financing. Because the loan is insured, lenders generally offer more leverage, lower interest rates, and longer amortizations than a conventional commercial mortgage. The trade-off is an insurance premium, usually added to the loan rather than paid up front, plus CMHC's underwriting and program rules. For most apartment deals the insured route still wins on cost and cash flow, which is why it is the default starting point, but not always, and that comparison is exactly what we do for you.
On pricing, the rate is not the benchmark you see quoted. Insured multi-unit financing is generally priced as a spread over the Canada Mortgage Bond, and because the CMB itself prices over Government of Canada bonds, your rate tracks both (some lenders quote directly off the GoC). The spread on top is set by the lender and the deal, so the all-in rate is the benchmark plus that spread.
CMHC is the only provider of multi-unit mortgage insurance in Canada, and it is not a single product. Each program suits a different kind of property and is underwritten a little differently.
| Program | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Standard Rental (MLI Standard) | Conventional market rental, 5+ units. The baseline multi-unit product, used when a project is not pursuing points. |
| MLI Select | Reduced premiums, longer amortization, and higher leverage in exchange for affordability, energy, or accessibility commitments. Points-based (below). |
| Retirement Housing | Seniors' housing across the range from independent living to highly supported care. |
| Supportive Housing | Housing with supports that help tenants stabilize, build independence, and reconnect with community. |
| Student Housing | Purpose-built student housing, on or off campus. |
| Single Room Occupancy (SRO) | Single private-room accommodation within a multi-tenant building. |
For most owners and builders it comes down to Standard versus MLI Select. The specialized streams (retirement, supportive, student, SRO) matter when your asset is one of those types, and each carries its own nuances. Picking the wrong lane, or missing one you qualify for, costs real money, which is the case for getting it reviewed.
The multi-unit programs support more than a purchase. Common loan purposes:
| MLI Select | MLI Standard (Market) | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Owners and builders who can commit to affordability, energy, or accessibility outcomes | Standard market rental not pursuing points |
| Leverage (LTV) | Up to 95% | Generally up to 85% (purchase or refinance) |
| Amortization | Up to 50 years at the top points tier | Up to 25 years typically; new construction now up to 50 years |
| Premium | Discounted by points tier (below) | Standard premium, no points discount |
| Debt coverage (DSCR) | Lower floor, often around 1.10 | Higher, often around 1.30 |
MLI Select scores a project across three categories. More points means better terms: a larger premium discount and a longer amortization, which directly improves cash flow.
| Points | Premium discount | Amortization |
|---|---|---|
| 50+ | 10% | Up to 40 years |
| 70+ | 20% | Up to 45 years |
| 100+ | 30% | Up to 50 years |
Points add across the three categories. Reaching 100 (the 50-year tier) almost always needs a strong energy score on top of affordability and accessibility. Which combination is realistic for your building, and how to structure the commitments, is exactly the planning we do with owners and developers.
Whichever program you use, the loan is driven by the property's income, not just its value. CMHC and lenders start from net operating income (NOI): rental and other income, less vacancy, less operating expenses. CMHC underwrites expenses against published regional benchmarks (maintenance and salaries per unit, management and other costs as a percent of income, a replacement reserve per appliance) and uses the higher of the benchmark or your actuals. That NOI, divided by the required debt coverage ratio, sets how much debt the building can carry. Leverage is then capped by the program's loan-to-value limit.
Our CMHC multifamily NOI and loan-sizing estimator above runs exactly this logic on the current 2025-2026 benchmarks for every region, so you can see a realistic starting number, then bring it to us to pressure-test against a real lender's view.
Commercial pre-approvals are harder than residential ones, because a commercial decision depends heavily on the property itself, its income, condition, tenancies, and the lender's view of the asset, not just the borrower. A clean residential pre-approval does not translate. That is precisely where we add value: because we work the full commercial lending market, banks, credit unions, CMHC-approved lenders, and private capital, we can review your situation and the property and tell you where you realistically stand, and pursue a commercial pre-approval that actually means something. If you are weighing an offer or a refinance and want to know what is achievable, reach out and we will assess it.
Ask us about a commercial pre-approvalIf you are building, two things matter. Insured construction terms have loosened: on the Standard market program, new-construction amortization now reaches 50 years, and rental-achievement holdbacks were eased so more of the loan can advance during construction. And beyond insurance, CMHC runs federal financing programs that can stack with insured financing. The Apartment Construction Loan Program (ACLP) provides low-cost construction loans for purpose-built rental of five or more units, with high loan-to-cost and rates below conventional construction financing, and is designed to flow into MLI Select for the permanent take-out; it is active and expanded through 2031-32, and now includes student and independent seniors housing. For affordable, co-op, non-profit, and community land trust projects there are further programs and funding, covered in our affordable and non-profit housing financing guide. How these combine is deal-specific and worth a dedicated conversation.
CMHC restructured multi-unit premiums in 2025 to a risk-based model tied to loan-to-value and loan purpose, with surcharges in certain cases; MLI Select then applies the points-based discount on top. The premium is generally added to the loan. Amortizations run up to 50 years on the strongest MLI Select files and on new construction; leverage runs up to 95% on MLI Select. Debt-coverage floors, recourse, and the exact premium depend on the program, the loan size, and the asset, all of which we confirm for your specific deal rather than assume.
Both move the math, which is why running real numbers with us beats last year's assumptions. For where rates and the market sit now, see our commercial rate and market notes.
Send us the property and your goals. We will model the NOI, compare Select, Standard, the specialized streams, and conventional, look at a commercial pre-approval, and take it to the right lenders across our network. A licensed member of our team will follow up. There is no cost to talk it through.
Talk to our commercial teamInformation here is general and educational. It is not financial, legal, or lending advice, an offer of financing, a pre-approval, or a CMHC approval. We are mortgage brokers. CMHC program terms, eligibility, unit thresholds, points, premium discounts, loan-to-value and amortization limits, debt-coverage requirements, and recourse are set by CMHC and lenders, are subject to review and to change, and depend on the property, the program, and supporting documentation; insured and conventional financing can differ materially. Figures and tiers shown are summaries for illustration only. Confirm current program details with us before relying on them. TMG HarbourTown Mortgage Inc., Licence #3000145.