The federal agency tasked with making housing more affordable paid out $31.7 million in taxpayer-funded bonuses last year, even as homeownership continues to slip out of reach for millions of Canadians.

Government records obtained through an order paper question and reviewed by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) show the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) awarded $3.5 million in bonuses to executives during the 2025-26 fiscal year, averaging $44,800 per executive.  Another $28.2 million went to non-executive staff.

The payouts come despite the agency acknowledging that housing supply and affordability remain among Canada's biggest challenges.

"If your organization's goal is making homes affordable, your C-suite shouldn't be taking millions in taxpayer-funded bonuses while Canadians can't afford homes," said Franco Terrazzano, federal director of the CTF.

The CMHC refused to disclose how many executives received bonuses this year, citing privacy concerns. However, it previously confirmed that roughly 99% of executives received bonuses in 2024-25, suggesting the payments remain nearly universal.

The issue is not new.

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In 2023, then-housing minister Sean Fraser promised to review the bonus system after MPs questioned why executives were receiving performance pay during a worsening housing crisis. Despite that commitment, CMHC has distributed roughly $90 million in bonuses since the beginning of 2023, with annual bonus payouts increasing each year.

Meanwhile, CMHC continues to promote an ambitious objective on its website: ensuring that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford that meets their needs.

Independent data paints a very different picture.

Polling by Abacus Data found that nearly nine in 10 Canadians are concerned about housing affordability, with many worrying about keeping up with mortgage or rent payments. A 2025 report from Royal Bank of Canada concluded that home ownership remains less affordable across the country than it was before the pandemic.

Even CMHC's own figures indicate affordability has deteriorated. According to the agency's data, the average Canadian household now spends more than half of its income on housing, up from 39% in 2019.

Terrazzano argues the bonuses reflect a broader culture within the federal government.

"Bonuses are for when you go above and beyond," he said. "They shouldn't be handed out like participation ribbons."

According to the CTF, about 98% of federal executives received bonuses in 2024-25, despite federal departments achieving only 54% of their stated performance targets that year.