OTTAWA – From coast-to-coast builder confidence is on the decline, the Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA)’s recently released Q1 2026 Housing Market Index (HMI) shows. …The CHBA’s HMI is an analysis of homebuilder sentiment and is an indicator about the current and future health of the residential construction industry in Canada with respect to housing units for ownership (freehold or condominium). According to a release, the 2026 Q1 single-family index fell 5.5 points to 20.9, which is just 1.3 points above the all-time record low. The multi-family index reached a third consecutive new record low and now sits at 13.4. In March, CMHC data indicated units slated for rental markets represented 56 per cent of all urban starts. Given affordability challenges in recent years, there has been a drastic shift to rental starts. In 2021, about 70 per cent of housing starts were for ownership; that number is now below 50 per cent.