Multi-Unit Residential Buildings (MURBs)

A multi-unit residential building (MURB) contains two or more units^{Footnote 1}. For a MURB to be eligible for the Canada Greener Homes Initiative (Grant and Loan), it must meet the following requirements:

• It has three or fewer storeys above ground
• The building area does not exceed 600 m²
• It has between 2 and 100 units
• The units are fully or partially stacked (up/down) or joined by a common space
  • In a house with a secondary suite, the units may be located side-by-side
• At least 50% of the total floor area must be residential living space
• The building must be habitable year-round

The Canada Greener Homes Initiative is based on the EnerGuide Rating System, the scope of which is limited to houses and low-rise MURBs, governed by Part 9 of the National Building Code of Canada. High-rise condos are based on very different engineering considerations and represent more complex structures that are outside the scope of both the EnerGuide Rating System and the Canada Greener Homes Initiative.

Two-unit MURBs, including houses with secondary suites, were entitled to all the same grants as attached and detached houses (e.g. eligible for heat pumps and heat pump water heaters).

Townhomes and row houses connected side-by-side or back-to-back are not MURBs and are eligible as individual houses.

Retirement homes are not MURBs and are not eligible for the Canada Greener Homes Initiative.

Additional eligibility criteria for MURBs

Homeowners living in a low-rise MURB must meet all eligibility requirements for the Canada Greener Homes Initiative in addition to the following requirements:

• A single pre- and post-retrofit EnerGuide evaluation must be performed on the entire structure (including all units and common areas) and not on a unit-by-unit basis. Homeowners within the MURB needed to organize themselves (e.g. a condo board) in such a way that all homeowners were aware that an evaluation was taking place.
• Retrofits in a MURB must be agreed to by the person or persons able to make decisions about the renovations to the building.
• For MURBs in which one person owns the entire building and rents out units within it, the owner must live within the building as their primary residence. The maximum grant amount that could be given in this case was $5,000.
• For MURBs with multiple homeowners, up to four individual homeowners within the MURB could apply for grants of up to $5,000 each, based on the MURBs multiplier table (see the following Calculating grants section). All applications had to be based on the pre- and post-retrofit EnerGuide evaluations undertaken for the entire structure.

Individual homeowners within the low-rise MURB could apply for individual grants of up to $5,000 based on the EnerGuide evaluations undertaken for the entire structure.

Maximum number of participants per MURB building

Calculating grants

The maximum allowable grant amount for MURBs are calculated based on the number of units within the building. The table below provides the multiplier amount. 

The role of the multiplier factor is to account for larger areas to insulate or renovate when comparing a MURB to a single dwelling. Eligibility criteria for respective insulation measures remain the same as described in the list of incentive measures (for example, insulating a minimum of 20% of the total area of the attic/ceiling). As for regular homes, MURBs cannot receive a grant for more than 100% of the costs of the renovation.

The MURB multiplier determines the maximum grant amount for the MURB’s entire building, based on the number of units.
Examples:
Maximum grant for a 3-unit building is $5000 x MURB multiplier 1 = $5,000.
Maximum grant for a 4-unit building is $5000 x MURB multiplier 1.5 = $7,500.
Maximum grant for a 15-unit building is $5000 x MURB multiplier 3 = $15,000.
Maximum grant for an 18-unit building is $5000 x MURB multiplier 4 = $20,000.

The MURB multiplier also determines the maximum number of homeowners living in the building as their primary residence that could apply in order to reach the maximum eligible grant.

The multiplier can be applied to calculate the maximum potential grant amount for:

• MURB insulation
• Air sealing
• Resiliency measures

The MURB multiplier does not apply to windows, doors or solar panels, but it was possible to get reimbursed for more windows, doors and solar panels through the higher grant amount applicable to the entire building. The maximum grant amount that a MURB could receive was $20,000.
MURBs (excluding two-unit MURBs and houses with secondary suites) are not eligible for grants related to:

• Heat pumps or heat pump water heaters
• Thermostats
• Furnaces and boilers (in northern and off-grid communities)

Here are some examples of grant calculations:

Example 1 - a MURB comprising nine units. To claim amounts for both attic and exposed floor insulation would be calculated as follows:
(attic maximum $1,800 x MURB multiplier 2.0 = $3,600) + (exposed floor $350 x MURB multiplier 2.0 = $700) = $4,300. As this amount is below $5,000, it could be claimed by one homeowner or divided between two homeowners as this is a nine-unit MURB.

Example 2 - a MURB comprising four units. To claim amounts for 3 ENERGY STAR windows and exposed floor insulation would be calculated as follows:
(3 ENERGY STAR windows x $125 per rough opening = $375, no MURB grant multiplier on windows) + (exposed floor $350 x MURB multiplier 1.5 = $525) = $900. As this amount is below $5,000, it could be claimed by one homeowner or divided between two homeowners as this is a four-unit MURB.

Example 3 - a MURB comprising 15 units. To claim amounts for 25 ENERGY STAR most efficient windows, air sealing, basement header and air source heat pumps (ASHP) would be calculated as follows:
(25 ENERGY STAR most efficient windows x $250 per rough opening = $6,250, no MURB grant multiplier on windows) + (air sealing for 10% better than target $810 x MURB multiplier 3.0 = $2,430) + (basement header $240 x MURB multiplier 3.0 = $720) + (ASHP not eligible for MURBs = $0) = $9,400. This amount must be divided and could be claimed by at least two homeowners as it is above the maximum of $5,000 for one homeowner.

Example 4 - a MURB comprising 15 units. To claim amounts for 20 ENERGY STAR most efficient windows, air sealing and insulation of 100% of the exterior wall area would be calculated as follows:
(20 ENERGY STAR most efficient windows x $250 per rough opening = $5,000, no grant multiplier) + (air sealing maximum $1,000 x 3.0 = $3,000) + (exterior wall insulation $5,000 x 3.0 = $15,000) = $23,000 that is capped at $15,000 based on the number of units (15) and the multiplier. In this case, the amount would need to be divided and claimed by three homeowners.

Example 5 - a MURB comprising 8 units. To claim amounts for a 13 kW photovoltaic system would be calculated as follows:
(13 kW Photovoltaic system x $1,000 = $13,000, no grant multiplier on photovoltaic systems) that is capped at $10,000 as this is based on a maximum incentive of $5,000 x MURB multiplier 2.0 = $10,000. As this amount is above $5,000, it would need to be claimed by two homeowners for this is an eight-unit MURB.

Find out how much was available for your retrofits at: Eligible retrofits and grant amounts