Unlocking Canada’s Rental Housing Supply
Michael Tsourounis on the long-term need for housing and the changes that could help accelerate delivery.
Canada’s housing challenge requires a long-term perspective—and practical steps to help new projects move forward. In a Q&A with Green Street News, Michael Tsourounis, Managing Partner, Co-CEO & CIO, Private Real Estate at Hazelview Investments, discussed the forces shaping housing demand and the policy and financing changes that could support new supply.
The following excerpts highlight his perspectives on approvals, indirect taxes and construction financing.
A long-term need for more housing
“I firmly believe that, based on the long-term fundamentals we have, Canada is going to need a lot of housing going forward. There are numbers that get thrown around that range somewhat dramatically, but at the end of the day, that number is certainly still a big number – whether you’re on the low side of that range or the high side.”
“We know we’re going to need a lot of immigration to take care of an aging population. When a lot of immigrants come to Canada, they need somewhere to live, and their first choice is looking for a rental.”
“I think that just sets a long-term foundational backdrop on why we need [more] housing to be built.”
Turning collaboration into new supply
“There has to be some applause for the concerted efforts we are seeing from all levels of government – federal, provincial and municipal. We are finally seeing groups working together to try to find solutions to help get that supply unlocked, with organizations like [the federal] Build Canada Homes and [the provincial] Building Ontario Fund.”
“Continuing to lobby about creative financing structures, supporting the removal of indirect taxes [on housing] and expediting timing approvals are key.”
“There needs to be continued support [to reform] some of those taxes that are indirectly affecting projects, making new supply that much more challenging.”
Creating greater certainty for investment
“Another big thing is looking at how our financing structures are established. Investors have a better long-term comfort level if they have a clearer picture of what the capital stack is going to look like. Initiatives like the Apartment Construction Loan Program, which provides long-term capital funding and structures that are additive, are helpful.”
“But when you’re mixing those [programs] with other [requirements] like affordability, it can sometimes weaken the economics of projects. That doesn’t necessarily always get things moving forward.”
Addressing construction financing constraints
“I really do think they’ve made good progress in removing some of these indirect taxes, but we need more, particularly in the way of things like development charges.”
“I think [we need] continued support on financing structures that are constructive, that help get supply built.”
“One big issue that private developers are facing is how you guarantee that much debt on the balance sheet. Some construction loans are in the hundreds of millions of dollars; you may have the equity to build it, [but] you don’t have the financial capacity on the guarantee side.”
“Is there a way through CMHC that there’s an insurance premium on how that’s paid? I think that would help unleash supply being built, because that’s certainly a gating factor right now.”
Excerpts from “Q+A: How Hazelview thinks Ottawa can ‘unleash’ housing supply,” by Matt Lamers, published in Green Street News on November 3, 2026.