A duplex, triplex or fourplex is a small multi-unit building that is still financed as a home: up to four units, lenders and CMHC treat it as residential property, and an owner who lives in one unit can buy it with an insured mortgage. This page covers the minimum down payment by number of units, mortgage insurance, how the rent counts when you qualify, and worked cash-flow examples. It is part of our guide to property types in Canada. What a duplex is and what makes one legal are covered in what is a duplex, and how multiplexes compare with other homes in types of houses in Canada.
Two to four units: residential financing
| Property | Units | Financed as |
|---|---|---|
| Duplex | 2 | Residential mortgage |
| Triplex | 3 | Residential mortgage |
| Fourplex | 4 | Residential mortgage |
| Five or more units | 5+ | Commercial or multi-unit rental financing |
Buildings with five or more rental units are insured under CMHC's separate multi-unit programs. Those buildings, and CMHC’s MLI Select program for them, are covered in multi-family investing.
Living in one unit and renting the others is known as house hacking; that guide covers the strategy, its trade-offs and life as an on-site landlord. The financing side is below: a smaller insured down payment when you live there, and rent from the other units counted when you qualify.
Down payment by number of units
If you will live in one of the units, the price-based minimum applies first. The minimum down payment is 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the rest for homes under $1.5 million, and 20% at $1.5 million or more. Mortgage insurance adds a second limit based on the number of units. A home of up to four units can be insured with a smaller down payment if you live in one of the units: CMHC lends up to 95% of the value for one or two units and 90% for three or four. So for a three- or four-unit home the minimum is the larger of the two amounts.
If you won’t live in the property, the rental rule applies instead. CMHC insures two- to four-unit rentals the owner won't live in only up to 80% of a value below $1 million, so the minimum down payment stays at 20%.
The CMHC premium is a percentage of the loan, by loan-to-value ratio, and is usually added to the mortgage. The table uses the premium for the loan-to-value each minimum produces at these prices; the full schedule is in CMHC mortgage rules.
| Purchase price | 1 or 2 units, you live there: minimum down | CMHC premium (4.00%) | 3 or 4 units, you live there: minimum down | CMHC premium (3.10%) | Rental you won’t live in: 20% down |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $600,000 | $35,000 | $22,600 | $60,000 | $16,740 | $120,000 |
| $900,000 | $65,000 | $33,400 | $90,000 | $25,110 | $180,000 |
| $1,200,000 | $95,000 | $44,200 | $120,000 | $33,480 | $240,000 |
Lenders can ask for more than these minimums. The down payment calculator works out the minimum for any price.
How rental income counts when you qualify
For an insured mortgage, CMHC adds rental income to your income rather than offsetting it: up to 50% of the gross rent from the property being insured (with its taxes and heat left out of the ratios), up to 100% of a secondary suite's rent in an owner-occupied two-unit home, and the net rental income of other rentals you own; these are maximums, and a lender can use its own method if the result is at least as conservative. Each lender’s own method (adding a share of the rent to income or offsetting it against the property’s costs) is covered in qualifying with rental income.
Qualification example
A household earning $95,000 a year looks at two purchases: a duplex whose second unit rents for $1,800 a month, and a triplex whose two other units rent for $3,000 a month in total. The lender is assumed to use CMHC’s maximums.
| No rent counted | Duplex (up to 100% of the suite’s rent) | Triplex (up to 50% of the gross rent) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent added to income, per year | $0 | $21,600 | $18,000 |
| Qualifying income | $95,000 | $116,600 | $113,000 |
| Most the monthly housing costs can be at the 39% GDS limit | $3,088 | $3,790 | $3,673 |
The higher ceiling on housing costs is what lets the rent raise the mortgage a buyer qualifies for. The lender then works out the largest mortgage whose payment, plus property tax and heat, fits under that ceiling at the stress-test rate, and checks total debt payments against the TDS limit too. Lenders check that you could afford the payments at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%, a floor set by OSFI for uninsured mortgages and by the federal government's mortgage insurance rules (the Minister of Finance's Eligible Mortgage Loan Regulations) for insured ones. Current rates are on our mortgage rates page.
Cash flow example: owner-occupied duplex
Illustrative assumptions: a $500,000 duplex bought with the minimum down payment at 4.5% over 25 years, with the second unit rented for $1,800 a month.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Down payment (the minimum) | $25,000 |
| CMHC premium (4.00% of the loan) | $19,000 |
| Insured mortgage | $494,000 |
| Monthly | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rent from unit 2 | $1,800 |
| Vacancy allowance (5%) | β$90 |
| Effective rent | $1,710 |
| Mortgage payment | $2,734 |
| Property tax | $350 |
| Insurance | $200 |
| Maintenance reserve (5% of the rent) | $90 |
| Capital repairs reserve (5% of the rent) | $90 |
| Total costs | $3,464 |
| Your net housing cost (total costs minus effective rent) | $1,754 |
| Rent for a comparable unit | $1,800 |
| Comparable rent minus your net housing cost | $46 |
On top of that, part of each payment repays principal: about $917 a month on average in the first year.
Cash flow example: owner-occupied triplex
Illustrative assumptions: a $700,000 triplex bought with the minimum down payment for three units at 4.5% over 25 years, with the two other units rented.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Down payment (the minimum for 3 units: the larger of the banded amount and 10% of the price) | $70,000 |
| CMHC premium (3.10% of the loan) | $19,530 |
| Insured mortgage | $649,530 |
| Monthly | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rent from unit 2 | $1,600 |
| Rent from unit 3 | $1,500 |
| Total rent | $3,100 |
| Vacancy allowance (5%) | β$155 |
| Effective rent | $2,945 |
| Mortgage payment | $3,595 |
| Property tax | $500 |
| Insurance | $280 |
| Maintenance reserve (5% of the rent) | $155 |
| Capital repairs reserve (5% of the rent) | $155 |
| Total costs | $4,685 |
| Your net housing cost (total costs minus effective rent) | $1,740 |
The two tenants’ effective rent covers 63% of the total costs, and about $1,206 a month of the payments repays principal on average in the first year.
Cash flow example: fourplex as a rental
Illustrative assumptions: a $900,000 fourplex bought as a rental with 25% down at 4.75% over 25 years, with a property manager.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Down payment | $225,000 |
| Mortgage | $675,000 |
| Monthly | Amount |
|---|---|
| Unit 1 (2 bedrooms) | $1,500 |
| Unit 2 (2 bedrooms) | $1,500 |
| Unit 3 (1 bedroom) | $1,200 |
| Unit 4 (1 bedroom) | $1,200 |
| Gross rent | $5,400 |
| Vacancy allowance (5%) | β$270 |
| Effective rent | $5,130 |
| Mortgage payment | $3,830 |
| Property tax | $650 |
| Insurance | $350 |
| Maintenance reserve (5% of gross rent) | $270 |
| Capital repairs reserve (5% of gross rent) | $270 |
| Property management (8% of gross rent) | $432 |
| Miscellaneous | $50 |
| Total costs | $5,852 |
| Monthly shortfall (total costs minus effective rent) | $722 ($8,664 a year) |
Part of each payment repays principal, about $1,210 a month on average in the first year, so the owner’s equity grows even while the property runs a shortfall.
Returns that include appreciation and tax can be modelled with the rental property calculator.
What to look for in a multiplex
| Factor | What to check |
|---|---|
| Legal status | Whether every unit is legal and permitted; the checks are in what makes a duplex legal |
| Separate utilities | Individually metered units let tenants pay their own utilities |
| Separate entrances | Required in many bylaws, and expected by most tenants |
| Parking | Space for each unit’s cars, where tenants need it |
| Unit condition | Whether each unit can be rented without major renovation |
| Current rents vs market | Rents below market can rise when tenants turn over, within the province’s rent rules |
| Zoning | Whether the property is zoned for the number of units it has |
| Roof, furnace, hot water, electrical | Large shared systems; a home inspection covers every unit |
| Lot size and layout | Whether there is room for a laneway house or garden suite later |
| Neighbourhood | Employment, transit and population trends |
Insurance for multiplexes
| Coverage | Details |
|---|---|
| Owner-occupied multiplex | A homeowner policy that also covers the rented units, often through a landlord endorsement |
| Rental multiplex | A landlord or rental property policy, which differs from a homeowner policy |
| Tenant insurance | Many landlords require tenants to carry it; it covers the tenant’s belongings and liability |
| Liability limits | Rental properties commonly carry higher liability limits than a single-family home |
| Sewer backup, flood, earthquake | Optional coverage, depending on the area |
| Loss of rental income | Covers lost rent if a unit becomes uninhabitable because of covered damage |
Taxes when you live in one unit
The rent from the other units is taxable, and shared costs such as mortgage interest, property tax and insurance are split between your unit and the rented units, usually by floor area; see how rental income is taxed. When you sell, the principal residence exemption can cover the part you lived in, and the rules for a home that is partly rented are in the exemption when you rent part of your home. Claiming capital cost allowance on the rented units is optional, and it can be recaptured when you sell.
Financing notes
| Topic | Details |
|---|---|
| Mortgage broker | A broker can compare lenders’ rental-income methods and rates |
| Appraisal | The income approach can value a multiplex differently from comparable sales |
| Records | Lenders look for existing leases, rental history and expense records, especially on a resale multiplex |
| Approval time | Multiplex mortgages usually need more documents than a single-family purchase |
| Later plans | Staying, moving out and renting every unit, or selling each has different tax and financing effects; moving out is covered in converting a home to a rental |
Where to find multiplexes
| Source | Details |
|---|---|
| Realtor.ca | Filter by multi-family property types |
| Your agent’s MLS access | Listings can reach agents before the public portals |
| For sale by owner | Kijiji, Facebook Marketplace, DuProprio (Quebec) |
| Off-market | Some multiplexes sell without a listing, often older buildings |
| Wholesalers | Off-market deals offered by intermediaries; their numbers need independent checking |
| Estate sales | Often priced for a quick sale |
Sources
The figures and rules on this page come from these sources, last checked against them between September 25, 2026 and October 2, 2026. How we check facts.
- Bank of Canada: Conventional 5-year mortgage rate (data series)
- Bank of Canada: Conventional 5-year mortgage rate (data series)
- Bank of Canada: Conventional 5-year mortgage rate (data series)
- Bank of Canada: Data table
- Canada Guaranty: Rental Advantage - Canada Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company
- CMHC: CMHC Purchase
- CMHC: Home Start
- CMHC: Calculating GDS / TDS
- CMHC: CMHC Improvement
- CMHC: Rental Income
- CMHC: Mortgage Loan Insurance for Standard Rental Housing
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada: How much you need for a down payment
- Justice Laws (Canada): Bank Act
- Justice Laws (Canada): Eligible Mortgage Loan Regulations
- OSFI: OSFI exempts uninsured mortgage straight switches from the prescribed MQR andβ¦
- OSFI: Amendments to the minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages