The Fund advanced their national goals in 2025
This year, advancing First Nations housing markets and homeownership on reserve took the First Nations Market Housing Fund (FNMHF) team from Nova Scotia to British Columbia. After bringing home the engagement sessions and reconfirming the Assembly of First Nations’ support for the transition of control to the Fund, the team will wrap 2025 with the first-ever FNMHF Annual General Meeting (AGM) on December 4 in the nation’s capital.
In response to a 2024 resolution by the Assembly of First Nations (AFN), the Fund held new engagement sessions regarding the transfer of control of the First Nations Market Housing Fund to First Nations. The Fund hosted regional engagements alongside other gatherings organized by national and provincial First Nations organizations in Montréal, Kamloops, and Dartmouth. These three in-person and three additional central, western, and eastern online engagements invited First Nations individuals to share their views, explore options for First Nations control, and provide feedback on the proposed membership model.
The results from these sessions, as well as a seventh session with existing FNMHF clients, were prepared by Indigenous-owned Cree8ive Advisory, based in Ottawa. The full National Engagement Summary Report offers a thoughtful and informed account of the sessions, highlighted by powerful and distinct insights from First Nations leaders, housing staff, youth, and Elder participants. Read the Fund’s September 2025 blog What 2024-25 Engagement Sessions Say About First Nations Autonomy for highlights from the report, which include the necessity of an AGM.
The report was published ahead of the September 2025 AFN Annual General Assembly (AGA), held in Winnipeg. In light of the successful action, AFN passed Resolution 09/2025, offering its support to move forward with the Memoranda to Cabinet. The Fund has been preparing for this landmark in advancing the transfer of care for years, with the appointments of Amy Comegan as Trustee and Travis Seymour as CEO driving a dynamic transformation.
One new mechanism is an organization-wide annual strategic planning session that incorporates diverse perspectives from staff and trustees. For the second year, the two-day gathering was held in Awkwesasne, the site of the Fund’s head office and the home community of many staff.
Alongside the significant work of establishing complete control of First Nations housing by First Nations, the Fund continued to partner, research, inform, and advocate to achieve greater housing outcomes.
The Fund is currently partnering with the First Nations Land Management Resource Centre on A to A Leasing. This innovation, first developed in Westbank First Nation in the Okanagan, uses 99-year leases for housing and economic development. Their self-governing agreement offers that residents may lease their land allotments to themselves and use the lease as collateral. This removes a barrier to obtaining a mortgage, as outlined in a May 2024 blog about the Fund’s services. The Crown technically holds reserve lands, and banks cannot claim those lands or any property on them to recover their assets if a loan is not repaid. A to A leasing provides an avenue for band members to obtain that collateral.
This initiative is an excellent example of First Nations’ ability to create and enact policies that meet their distinct needs. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has embraced this potential for other First Nations by including on-reserve leasehold loans without a Ministerial Loan Guarantee in its equity policies, reducing down payment minimums from 10% to 5%.
The Lands Advisory Board, which also feels the initiative will make it easier for First Nation governments to support their members in improving housing on reserve lands, invited Fund CEO Travis Seymour to present at their AGM in April. He also participated in the panel Sustainable Reporting: A Transformative Lever for Global Finance at the 2025 Sustainable Finance Summit in Montreal. The Fund will be instrumental in increasing awareness of the A to A Leasing option for First Nations nationwide and other pathways to ease the homeownership journey, while building niche expertise with global applications.
While Fund staff travel to twelve provinces and territories serving First Nations, the Fund has made an impact in regional hubs across the nation this year. According to the National Capital Region’s Top Employers (2025), its employees are supported, too. Reasons for their selection included five paid special leave days for personal matters, 28 weeks of unpaid compassionate care leave, flexible work options, and tuition subsidies for professional development. All of these respect the values employees may place on caring for themselves and their communities, being present with their loved ones, living in their home territory, and challenging and improving their abilities.
After 14 years of work at the Fund, the team will miss the leadership of Senior Operations Analyst Tracy Tarnowski. An urban First Nations woman who grew up in Sudbury, Ontario, her legacy upon retirement includes a strong governance framework that will guide the Fund in achieving its goals for years to come.
A year of national impact will continue during the first FNMHF AGM, which will take place alongside the AFN’s Special Chiefs Assembly at the Rogers Centre in Ottawa on December 4, 2025. The hybrid format will ensure accessibility for all interested in engaging with the Fund and strengthening their ability to meet communities’ needs. The Fund looks forward to updating participants on their progress while receiving guidance on programs, advocacy, and partnerships in the months and years ahead.
FNMHF offices will close on December 24, 2025 and reopen on January 2, 2026. Happy holidays and see you in the New Year!