Secondary suite programs in Ontario

Checked against the official pages on 29 October 2026. Programs, amounts, and deadlines change. Nothing on this page is an approval or a promise of funding. Read the official page, or ask the agency that runs the program, before you apply or sign a contract. Barrie Basement Suites does not administer these programs.

An earlier version of this article said homeowners could get a Canada Secondary Suite Loan of up to $40,000, with applications opening in December 2024. That was announced, and a later federal statement proposed raising the limit to $80,000, but the loan was not operating. Budget 2025 says the Canada Secondary Suite Loan Program was not yet operational and will not be implemented, because it would overlap with insured-mortgage changes announced in January 2025. Do not budget on that loan.

Simcoe County Secondary Suites Program

The County of Simcoe publishes a Secondary Suites Program with funding of up to $50,000 per unit to create a secondary suite or a garden suite. The County describes it as a 15-year forgivable loan, not as cash you can count on the day you apply. Funding is limited and is offered first-come, first-served to eligible applicants. The County's materials also say the unit has to meet local zoning and building rules, and that rent has to stay within the County's affordable limits for the term of the agreement.

Apply to the County, not through this website. Start at the County's affordable housing programs page and use the application package linked there.

Barrie Bonus

The City of Barrie describes the Barrie Bonus as a one-time top-up of $15,000 for homeowners who are already approved for the County of Simcoe Secondary Suites Program. It is a grant under the City's Housing Community Improvement Plan. Funding is limited and first-come, first-served. The City says you do not apply to Barrie first: after the County approves the secondary-suite loan, County staff provide the Barrie Bonus form and send it to the City. The City's page says the $15,000 cheque is issued after the building permit is approved and issued.

The property has to be in Barrie and on full municipal water and sewer, and the project has to meet the Housing CIP rules. Confirm that money is still available before you rely on it.

Barrie Bonus for affordable additional residential units

Barrie permit-fee reduction and rebate

For 2026, the City of Barrie is reducing eligible building-permit application fees for additional residential units (including second suites) by 50 percent. The City says the reduction applies to the additional-unit portion of qualifying applications submitted from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2026, or until the funding is used. It does not cover every charge. Development charges, revision fees, reinspection fees, and work that is not part of the additional unit are examples the City lists as excluded.

There is a further rebate of the remaining 50 percent if the project is finished on the City's timeline. For that rebate, the permit must be issued before December 31, 2026. The City also requires occupancy, or the final interior inspection for an interior conversion, within 12 months of issuance and no later than December 31, 2027, plus the paperwork the page describes. The City says it can review, change, or end the program.

2026 Additional Residential Unit Incentives Program

CMHC refinance to add a suite

This is the option that replaced the idea of a separate federal suite loan. It is mortgage insurance for a refinance, not a grant and not the cancelled Canada Secondary Suite Loan.

CMHC Refinance lets an eligible homeowner refinance an existing home to help pay for a self-contained secondary suite. CMHC's page says financing can go up to 90 percent of the as-improved value, the as-improved value must be below $2 million, and amortization can be up to 30 years. The extra funds are for building and finishing the suite, not for taking equity out for other spending.

CMHC also says the borrower must already own the home, and the borrower or a close relative (spouse, common-law partner, or a parent-child relationship) must live in one unit without paying rent. The suite cannot be a short-term rental, which CMHC describes as any rental of less than 90 days in a row. Insured financing is supposed to be approved before construction starts, or at least at an early stage. A lender offers the mortgage. CMHC insures it if the file qualifies. Ask your lender or mortgage broker whether this product fits, and use CMHC's page for the rules.

The federal announcement of these mortgage-insurance changes is on the Department of Finance release from October 8, 2024. The proposal to raise the cancelled loan to $80,000 is in the December 2024 Fall Economic Statement note. Budget 2025 is the document that says that loan will not be implemented.

Before you plan the renovation around a program

These programs are not automatic, and they do not all stack. A County loan, the Barrie Bonus, a permit-fee rebate, and an insured refinance each have their own rules, and any one of them can be paused when the money runs out. Get the approval in writing before you treat it as part of the project budget.

If you want a contractor's estimate for the work itself, that is separate from these applications. You can request an estimate or read how third-party financing is described on this site. For the incentives above, use the official links.