About us

Everyone deserves a place to call home

The Canadian Housing and Renewal Association was established in 1968 as a national non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and strengthening the social and non- profit housing sector. Our mission is to lead and provoke system-wide action toward the right to housing for all by serving as the national voice of the community housing sector and by creating the conditions for community housing providers to achieve their goals.

Adequate housing provides a stable foundation from which people, communities and Canada as a whole can prosper; we advocate for improved housing policies and programs that keep housing affordable, expand housing capacity, and work to end homelessness. We support a sustainable housing profession and work to connect the broader sector, as well as our members, who collectively house and serve hundreds of thousands of people living in or seeking affordable housing.

Our Story

Back in the mid-1960s, a group of concerned urban renewal professionals in Toronto became members of the Upper New York State Chapter of the National Association of Housing Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO). From this nucleus, the Canadian Association of Housing & Renewal Officials (CAHRO) was born in 1968. Since then, our name has changed but the ideals that brought us together are still at our core. For over 50 years, we have been working to bring affordable housing issues and solutions to the attention of policy-makers.

Our Goals

CHRA is the national voice in Canada speaking on the full range of issues related to affordable, social and non-profit housing. We center everything we do around four key pillars:

  1. Keeping homes affordable
  2. Ending homelessness
  3. Renewing our communities
  4. Supporting a sustainable housing profession

 

Our Members

CHRA's strength comes from our members. As a national membership-based organization, we represent members from every Canadian province and territory. Our members include:

  • Affordable and social housing providers
  • Indigenous housing providers
  • Municipalities
  • Provincial and territorial housing departments
  • Housing associations and networks
  • Non-profit organizations
  • Individuals, including retired housing professionals

 

What We Do

CHRA believes that, although shelter is a basic element of human survival, adequate and affordable housing provides much more than a physical structure to meet this need. An affordable and secure home provides a stable foundation from which individuals, communities and Canada as a whole can prosper.

CHRA undertakes research, develops policy, makes recommendations, and advocates on behalf of its members to compel decision-makers to make the kinds of choices that will lead us to a future where all Canadians can access and afford the type of housing they need.

As a member-based organization, we offer:

Advocacy

CHRA is the voice of Canada’s community housing sector. We engage our members to ensure their voices are heard by federal decision-makers. Through advocacy, research, and relationship-building we work towards our shared goal that all who live in Canada have access to safe, affordable, appropriate housing.

Indigenous housing leadership

The Indigenous Caucus is the leading forum of its kind in Canada, bringing together urban, rural, and northern Indigenous housing providers to advocate for and address the unique housing-related challenges faced by Indigenous peoples.

Professional Development

CHRA administers the Housing Professionals Mentorship Program, which connects today’s leaders in community housing with the leaders of tomorrow to help strengthen and build sustainability into the sector, and the Chartered Institute of Housing Canada, which is leading the way in creating educational opportunities and professional designations for housing professionals across Canada.

Knowledge sharing

Our newsletters, webinars, blog posts, and social media channels inform our members on the latest news and practical knowledge from the housing sector. Our Annual Congress on Housing and Homelessness brings together hundreds of housing sector experts, leaders, professionals, government officials, and more for three days of learning, networking, and celebrating the community housing sector.