MLI Select is CMHC’s mortgage loan insurance for rental buildings with five or more units. A project earns points for three commitments: affordable rents, energy efficiency and accessibility. At 50, 70 or 100 points, the insured loan can go higher, amortize longer and pay a smaller premium. The lender makes the loan, and CMHC insures it.
Source: CMHC, MLI Select page, New Construction insurance flexibilities, and CMHC Multi-unit Fees and Premiums at-a-glance (MLI Select discount schedule). Checked October 31, 2026. Debt coverage is 1.10 for standard rental housing. Existing buildings: up to 85% loan-to-value at 50 points, up to 95% at 70 and 100.
Pick one commitment or stack several. The total sets your tier.
10% affordable units alone, or energy level 1 plus accessibility level 2.
15% affordable units, or 10% plus energy level 1.
15% for 20 years, 10% plus energy level 3, or 25% alone.
Source: CMHC, MLI Select page, New Construction point distribution, checked October 31, 2026. NECB and NBC baselines are the 2020 national codes. Student housing can earn energy and accessibility points only.
The ceiling comes from one CMHC workbook, by market.
CMHC sets the affordable rent at 30% of the median before-tax income of renter households in your market, divided by 12. The incomes come from CMHC’s 2019 workbook, rounded to the nearest $100 and still linked from the MLI Select page. New and existing buildings use the same ceiling. If your town isn’t listed, CMHC accepts a comparable centre, the province, or a comparable rural centre.
Source: CMHC, Real Median Total Household Income (Before Taxes), Renter Households, 2019 (last updated March 2021), linked from the MLI Select page. Checked October 31, 2026. Monthly figures are computed with the formula above.
The affordable rent sits below what even a studio rents for today.
Source: CMHC, Rental Market Survey, October 2025, City of Toronto, as returned by a Bucky snapshot of 720 Bathurst St (vacancy 2.8%, average rent up 3.0% on the year). These are purpose-built rentals. The ceiling is the same for every unit size.
The gap is the cost of the points. On a new Toronto building, each affordable unit rents for about $1,320 a month less than the average for buildings from 2000 on. The insurance benefits have to be worth more than that over the commitment.
Counts round up to a whole unit.
Rule of thumb, not a pro forma: units × ($2,668 − $1,347.50) × 12. It assumes market units would rent at the October 2025 average for Toronto buildings from 2000 on, and ignores rent growth, unit mix and vacancy. Unit counts match the Bucky affordable rent calculator.
They are paid once in construction, not every month in rent. Many projects mix the two.
Affordable rents rise only as provincial rules allow, or by CMHC’s CPI figure. Ontario’s 2027 figure is 0.7%.
A project has to qualify for the program before any points count.
Affordability commitments run 10 years or more. A 20-year promise adds 30 points.
At least 1.10 for standard rental, 1.20 for other shelter models.
Panels can count toward energy points, up to 15% of the reduction, and never on their own.
Insurance doesn’t change what the lot allows. Check units, height and floor area before you model points.
No. It is mortgage loan insurance. An approved lender makes the loan, and CMHC insures it. The insurance is what lets the lender offer higher leverage and longer amortization.
CMHC still links its 2019 median renter income workbook, last updated March 2021, from the MLI Select page. Until CMHC uses a newer series for underwriting, the 2019 figures set the ceiling.
Only with five or more residential units. A fourplex does not meet the minimum. Whether a lot can hold five units is a zoning question you can check first.
No. Bucky shows the affordable rent and the unit counts for your market, with sources. CMHC and your approved lender decide the file.
See CMHC rents and the affordable rent for any address.
