No matter where you look, the housing and homelessness crisis is personal. Too many Canadians are struggling to find and keep a place to live and worrying about the trade war making it even worse.  Skyrocketing rents, impossible home prices that strip the dream of owning a home from young people, and surging homelessness are all symptoms of a housing system stretched to the brink. People are being pushed into homelessness with nowhere else to go while other are worried about what’s next as one emergency could force them out of their home.

Our housing and homelessness crisis is holding us back as a country, standing in the way of the new government’s commitment to unlock Canada’s full economic potential. But it doesn’t have to be this way – with bold federal leadership we can set the tone and direction of Canada’s next chapter.

With the new federal government setting its agenda, Budget 2025 is about more than money. It’s a moment for us to build a stronger, more united and more resilient Canada by turning the tide on homelessness and fixing the housing crisis for good. Together, we can make sure housing is at the heart of our government’s agenda. That’s why the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness (CAEH) is urging the federal government to take action on the five following priorities:

1. Get Team Canada working on ending homelessness and fixing the housing crisis

When any other kind of disaster happens in our country, all levels of government come together with a coordinated response. In the best cases, we take that and build long-term solutions to prevent the same kind of crisis. It’s time to go further than fragmented, uncoordinated approaches and bring that same energy and approach to housing. Budget 2025 should commit to:

• Negotiating a new national housing agreement with provinces and territories, building on past national efforts in health care, child care, disaster response and more – to end homelessness and solve the housing crisis for good

2. Build deeply affordable and supportive housing

Everyone deserves a safe place to call home. That includes deeply affordable and supportive housing for people at risk of and experiencing homelessness. Budget 2025 must deliver on the government’s Build Canada Homes initiative – not just by building more, but by building homes where rents are geared to income:

• At least 50,000 new supportive housing units
• Affordable housing with a definition of affordability that reflects the reality of what Canadians can afford

3. Equip communities to resolve unsheltered homelessness faster

More and more people are being pushed into homelessness throughout Canada and local communities are stretching scarce resources to respond. Budget 2025 must:

• Expand the Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampments Initiative
• Increase and strengthen support for refugee resettlement to help ease the pressure on local shelters

4. Invest now to prevent a wave of new homelessness

More than half of Canadians fear that they’re one emergency away from losing their home. Research shows housing benefits can have an immediate impact, creating a safety net that lets struggling people keep their homes and people experiencing homelessness afford housing. That’s why we need Budget 2025 to:

• Bring together federal, provincial and territorial governments to renew and expand the Canada Housing Benefit – providing a real safety net to help struggling Canadians withstand economic uncertainty.

5. Advance solutions across the whole housing system so every Canadian has a place to call home

Homelessness is not an isolated issue – it’s a sign that our housing system is in crisis. Budget 2025 is our opportunity to address the whole system, from homelessness to rental affordability and measures to restore the dream of home ownership. With our Housing Canada Coalition partners, CAEH released the Sovereign Housing Plan, which covers the entire housing system. Budget 2025 is an opportunity to advance these kinds of bold, coordinated solutions to fix the housing crisis for good.

The bottom line is that Budget 2025 will set the direction of Canada’s next chapter. This is our opportunity to urge our government to choose a bold path – so everyone in Canada has a safe and affordable place to call home.

Read our full pre-budget submission here.

Want to help us push for these priorities for the upcoming Budget? Sign your name to call for bold action on homelessness in Budget 2025.