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May 24, 2022

10 tips for applying to the Housing Supply Challenge

Dimly lit light bulb hanging in front of an out of focus business meeting.

By Evergreen

Helpful hints for building and submitting your application.

Are you submitting an idea to the Housing Supply Challenge? As the lead for the Housing Supply Challenge Support Program, we’re here to provide guidance, mentorship and the resources you need to develop and improve your submission. We’ve put together this quick list of useful hints, reminders and best practices as you prepare your application.  

1. Use the Application Guide. Read through the guide for your round carefully – there’s a ton of helpful information there to help you optimize your application. The Application Guide for Stage 1 of the Northern Access Round can be found on Impact Canada’s website. The Stage 2 guide is available on Impact Canada’s portal.

2. Focus on the details. Read the questions carefully, and if you’re not 100% sure what they’re asking, contact Evergreen to find out. Fill out all the fields in the application; incomplete applications will not be accepted. If something doesn’t apply to you, don’t leave it blank – explain why. Pay attention to word and character limits.  

3. Communicate clearly. Make sure your proposal is easy to understand (avoid using acronyms and jargon) and information is accessible to the reader. Also, don’t copy and paste any tables into the application to avoid formatting issues. 

4. Get a second, third, and fourth set of eyes on it. Before you submit, ask colleagues to read through the application and flag any errors, omissions or unclear language. Choose someone with deep expertise to ensure accuracy, then have someone who is less familiar with the project take a look – they’ll be more likely to identify anything that’s not clear and any jargon or acronyms that may not be widely understood. 

5. Have one person fill in the form. Having multiple team members working on the online form can result in errors or lost information. Instead, get everyone to collaborate and develop their responses in a separate shared document, then designate a one person to complete the official application. Save a copy for your own files before submitting.  

6. Don’t worry about attachments in Stage 1. Letters of support or any other attachments aren’t expected during Stage 1: there’s actually no way to submit them. Hold on to them – if you are selected as a shortlisted finalist, you can provide them in Stage 2.  

7. Know your deadlines, don’t leave it to the last minute. Posted deadlines are in Eastern Time. Pay close attention to when applications are due in your time zone (we’ve posted them on this page), and give yourself enough time to complete a thorough application. Deadlines are firm: past the specified time and date, the Impact Canada Portal will no longer accept applications.   

  1. Getting Started Round Stage 2 deadline is June 15, 2022 at 2 p.m ET.  
  2. Northern Access Round Stage 1 deadline is June 23, 2022 at 2 p.m ET.

8. If you have questions, ask. The Challenge has a strong support system in place to help applicants through the process. If you need help or are unsure of something, please reach out. If you have technical issues with the form, contact challenge@cmhc.com. For any other questions or to discuss your application, contact Evergreen by email or call them at 647 670 2265.  

9. Familiarize yourself with the application form. To avoid surprises when submitting your application, each round’s applicant guide includes an appendix that leads you through the different questions of the application form. It also contains helpful tips such as what CMHC wants to see included in your responses, definitions of key terms, and word or character counts.  

10. Pause before pressing “submit.” You’ll be prompted to confirm before actually sending, but if you do end up hitting that button before you meant to, you’ll need to contact Impact Canada to retrieve your application before the submission deadline. 

About the Housing Supply Challenge 

Led by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the Challenge encourages residents, communities, interested individuals and groups,  and experts to propose solutions to the barriers to new housing supply. The Challenge will distribute $300 million in funding over 5 years. Successful submissions will receive funding to prototype or incubate their proposal. Following the prototype stage, selected finalists will share a pool of additional funding to implement their solutions. 

 

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