What is MLI Select?
MLI Select is Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) points-based financing program for multi-unit residential rental properties with five or more units. Unlike conventional financing, MLI Select doesn't offer one fixed set of terms — instead, a project earns points by committing to specific outcomes in three categories, and the total point score determines what financing tier it qualifies for.
The program exists to incentivize private capital toward outcomes CMHC wants more of: energy-efficient buildings, affordable rents, and accessible units. In exchange, qualifying projects get meaningfully better leverage and pricing than they'd find through conventional multi-unit financing.
How do MLI Select points work?
Points are earned across three categories, and they combine — a project can lean into one category or blend all three to reach a higher tier:
- Energy Efficiency — earned by exceeding National Building Code (NBC) Part 9 baselines. Level 1 (20 pts) is a modest improvement; Level 3 (50 pts) is a high-performance build.
- Affordability — earned by committing a share of units to rents at or below CMHC's published Median Market Rent (MMR) for the area. Deeper affordability commitments earn more points, up to 100.
- Accessibility — earned through Rick Hansen Foundation certification, either Accessible (20 pts) or Certified Gold (30 pts).
What do the MLI Select point tiers unlock?
| Points | Amortization | Max LTV | Premium Discount |
|---|---|---|---|
| <50 | 40 yrs (standard) | 85% | None |
| 50 | 40 yrs | 85% | 10% |
| 70 | 45 yrs | 90% | 20% |
| 100+ | 50 yrs | 95% | 30% |
Longer amortization lowers the monthly payment, which directly helps DSCR and cash flow. Higher LTV reduces the equity needed to close. The premium discount cuts the upfront CMHC insurance cost that gets financed into the loan.
What is the MLI Select premium in 2026?
This is one of the most commonly missed details when investors research MLI Select using older comps or broker reports prepared before the change. The tier discount is applied to the base premium plus the amortization surcharge combined — not to the base premium alone — which is a distinction that trips up manual calculations.
What DSCR does CMHC require for MLI Select?
DSCR is calculated as Net Operating Income (NOI) divided by annual debt service. If a deal doesn't clear 1.10x at the proposed loan-to-value, a lender will size the loan down until it does — meaning the actual financeable loan can be smaller than the program's headline LTV cap would suggest, especially on properties with a low cap rate relative to the cost of debt.
How is MLI Select different from conventional multi-unit financing?
Conventional CMHC-insured multi-unit financing typically caps out around 75% LTV with a 25-year amortization, no points system, and a flat premium schedule. MLI Select can extend leverage to 95% LTV and amortization to 50 years — but only for projects that commit to the underlying energy, affordability, or accessibility outcomes and can document them through the CMHC application process.
Check your own deal's MLI Select tier in under a minute. CapShark scores your points, tests your DSCR against the 1.10× minimum, and previews forward cash flow. The full 30-year lender package is paid.
Try the CMHC MLI Select Calculator