Category: Subsidies and financial assistance

CMHC subsidies and emergency co-op subsidies. Subtopic of Housing charges & finances

Federal Subsidy Program Update (FCHI)

 

It’s in our interest for the FCHI program to be either made permanent or extended by a number of years, because Woodsworth will be able to sign on to it when our own program ends.

This is an update on the national subsidy program, called FCHI, which provides rental assistance to federal co-ops in Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and PEI. It was created by the federal government 10 years ago and it’s set to end on March 31, 2028.

Some background on the federal government’s position on FCHI:
The Liberal government created the program after it won the 2015 election, and in late 2024 it announced that it would extend it by 5 years until 2033, with $360 million allotted to the fund ($70 million per year). 

Unfortunately, due to the political upheaval brought on by Trump’s second presidency, PM Trudeau’s resignation and a subsequent federal election, the measure to extend FCHI didn’t pass into law. And then it was forgotten about among all the threats and uncertainty of the new world order. FCHI is still set to end in March 2028.

But CHF Canada continued to lobby hard in support of FCHI, and they were recently joined by Windmill Line Co-op which in the 1990’s led the successful campaign to stop the federal government from downloading federal co-ops to the provinces. Recently, there was a meeting organized by Windmill Line with some of their representatives, a CHFC staffer and this riding’s member of Parliament, Evan Solomon, the Minister of AI and Digital Innovation. Apparently, the meeting went well, with the Minister agreeing to take the issue to cabinet discussions. I’ve been told that Windmill plans to follow up within a month.

As many of you know, Woodsworth is not part of FCHI and has its own government RGI program. Ours provides 25% of co-op households with a subsidy to pay their housing charges. This program was part of our original CMHC mortgage agreement and when our co-op re-financed its mortgage through the National Housing Strategy a few years ago, we were allowed to keep the RGI agreement until its original end date: January 1, 2030. 

As things stand now, those 49 households will no longer receive subsidy after that date. This will negatively impact and create much hardship for those households, as well as financially destabilizing Woodsworth as whole.

So it’s in our interest for the FCHI program to be either made permanent or extended by a number of years, because Woodsworth will be able to sign on to it when our own program ends.

I’ve been following developments and plan to keep writing here on any progress that I hear about, but it would be good for Woodsworth to also join the lobbying efforts. So I’m asking for the Board and co-op members to please write to our MP and the Housing Minister about extending FCHI. 

Here are their email addresses:

Evan Solomon: Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre, Minister of AI and the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario – evan.solomon@parl.gc.ca

Gregor Robertson: Minister of Housing and Infrastructure – gregor.robertson@parl.gc.ca

These talking points provided by CHF Canada about FCHI that might be helpful:

•  Rental Assistance is critical for the stability of existing co-ops.

• FCHI allows co-ops and non-profits to operate as mixed-income communities where people with different incomes can live.

• Many households receiving FCHI would be at risk of homelessness without it.

• The uncertainty around FCHI is already causing significant issues:

• For low-income households, they are uncertain if they will be able to continue to afford to live in their homes, despite rarely having access to a more affordable option. This is causing considerable stress.

• For co-ops, they are wondering how they will be able to pay their bills if some of their members are no longer able to pay co-op housing charges. Most co-ops are at least 25 years old and need repair and renewal. They are seeking private sector refinancing to do so, but lenders are increasingly unwilling, given there is no guarantee a portion of the co-op members will be able to pay their housing charges as of 2028.

Please remember that it’s the members with the greatest need who stand to lose this vital support: low-wage worker households, seniors on fixed incomes, and members receiving social assistance such as ODSP and OW. They are a vital part of this community and they need us to speak up. 

Equally important, having the ability to provide subsidy is essential to maintaining affordability and financial stability for all members in our co-op. I hope you’ll join me in writing to our representatives in support of the rental assistance program. The government needs to hear from us!

Author: C. Pasten
Source: The Weekly, Feb 8, 2026

Housing Charge Subsidy Terms and Agreement – Occupancy Bylaw: Article 3.7 and Appendix C

The Occupancy Bylaw #82 says:

3.7. Housing Charge Subsidy
Members who have a housing charge subsidy owe the co-op the full housing charges less the subsidy. If the housing charge subsidy funds are provided by government or other funders and the co-op does not receive the subsidy funds, the members must pay the full housing charges. It does not matter why the funds were not received. It could be because a member was not entitled to the housing charge subsidy, or the funder changed its policies, or for any other reason.

3.7.1 The household receiving housing charge subsidy will give the co-op a signed declaration of its gross household income each year.

3.7.2 The assisted housing charge will rise or fall when the household’s income or assets rise or fall.

3.7.3 The assisted housing charge will be changed after the fact if the household reports its income incorrectly.

3.7.4 The assisted household may not sublet its unit.

3.7.5 All occupants of assisted households, including non-members aged 16 years and older must sign:

– Appendix A, Occupancy Bylaw: Member Charge

– Appendix B: Household Members

– Appendix C: Housing Charge Subsidy Terms and Agreement of this Occupancy Bylaw including members and any non-member occupants aged 16 years or older, and

– All members and any non-member occupants aged 16 years and older must be listed and sign Schedule A, Housing Charge Assistance Bylaw: Application for Housing Charge Subsidy and any other forms required by the Housing Charge Assistance bylaw.

3.7.6 The assisted household may be offered a unit of a more appropriate size if its composition changes. The household can make other choices as listed in the Housing Charge Subsidy Bylaw.

The following is Appendix C of Woodsworth’s Occupancy Bylaw – Housing Charge Subsidy Terms and Agreement

Appendix C: Housing Charge Subsidy Terms & Agreement. This has to be signed at the same time as the member signs the Occupancy Agreement if the member will receive housing charge subsidy. If the member gets housing charge subsidy at a later time, Appendix C has to be signed before the housing charge subsidy starts. Up-to-date Appendices A and B have to be signed at the same time.

Subsidy and housing charge support

Woodsworth is a non-profit housing co-operative. Members’ housing charges (rent) are set to cover the co-op’s mortgage, operating costs, maintenance, property taxes, staffing, and reserves for future repairs.

To support members facing financial challenges, Woodsworth offers two types of assistance: Rent-Geared-to-Income (RGI) assistance through CMHC and Emergency Housing Charge Assistance.

Rent-Geared-to-Income (RGI) Assistance (CMHC)

Woodsworth has an agreement with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) that allows up to 25% of households to receive rent-geared-to-income (RGI) assistance.

RGI assistance helps households whose housing charges are 30% or more of their gross household income.

Key points:

* RGI is administered by co-op management under a formal CMHC agreement.
* All applications and records are strictly confidential.
* The program is usually fully subscribed, but a confidential waiting list is maintained.
* The current CMHC agreement runs until January 1, 2030.
* Co-op housing federations across Canada are actively advocating for the program to continue beyond that date.

Rules and Eligibility

Details about eligibility, income calculation, unit size requirements, applications, and appeals are set out in Woodsworth’s Housing Charge Subsidy Bylaw, which reflects the CMHC agreement. This includes:

* Definition of gross household income
* Proof of income requirements
* Occupancy standards and over-housing rules
* Overhousing surcharge options
* Appeals, privacy, and conflict-of-interest provisions

Households receiving subsidy must also sign the Housing Charge Subsidy Terms and Agreement (Appendix C of the Occupancy Bylaw).

Emergency Housing Charge Assistance (EHC)

Woodsworth also maintains an Emergency Housing Charge Assistance Plan (EHC) to provide short-term help to members experiencing a temporary loss or reduction of income.

This program is separate from CMHC’s RGI program and is funded directly by Woodsworth.

Key points:

* EHC assistance is discretionary and administered by management under Board direction.
* Assistance is time-limited: up to three (3) months in a 12-month period.
* Funding comes from a fixed annual budget and may be limited or exhausted.
* Members must not be in arrears and cannot be receiving CMHC RGI at the same time.
* Members may be on the waiting list for CMHC RGI while receiving EHC
Full details are outlined in the Emergency Housing Charge Assistance Policy.

Related Policies and Bylaws

For more detailed information, please refer to:

Housing Charge Subsidy Bylaw (including CMHC schedules)
Occupancy Bylaw (including Appendix C: Housing Charge Subsidy Terms and Agreement)
Membership Bylaw: Member Approval and Unit Allocation
Emergency Housing Charge Assistance Policy

What the bylaws and policies say about housing charge subsidy

If you have questions about eligibility or need help applying, please contact co-op management. All inquiries are handled confidentially.