A home on reserve stays in service for its full life when maintenance is planned, budgeted and checked, not left until something fails. In practice that means a written maintenance plan tied to an up-to-date inventory of every unit, a regular inspection routine, a seasonal checklist built for long winters, a housing policy that says who fixes what, and trained staff to run it all.
It is general information, not legal or program advice. Funding rules change, so confirm anything here with your Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) regional office, your CMHC Indigenous and Northern Housing specialist, or your lands office before you act on it.
Why does a maintenance plan matter so much on reserve?
Because homes on reserve are wearing out far faster than they should. ISC's Evaluation of the On-Reserve Housing Program (March 2024) reports respondents' concern about "a lack of regular maintenance due to funding availability and backlogs," and notes some estimates that on-reserve housing needed to be replaced "every fifteen years or so," giving lifespans "far shorter than housing elsewhere in Canada." The same evaluation found that many First Nation respondents said cost-effective housing programs "required long-term housing plans."
The federal program objectives point the same way. ISC's terms and conditions for the Capital Facilities and Maintenance Program (CFMP) describe funding activity "that protects, maintains and maximizes asset life cycle." A maintenance plan is how a community turns that objective into a work schedule and a budget line.
How does ISC funding for housing operation and maintenance work?
Housing sits inside the CFMP, but it is funded differently from community buildings and water systems. The CFMP terms and conditions list as eligible "all housing related activities including the day-to-day operation and maintenance, insurance," along with administration and management of the housing portfolio, debt servicing, management support, and housing training, including training for community housing inspectors.
Most of that money arrives as formula-based core funding. ISC told a Commons committee in June 2024 that it "disburses an average of $149.5 million per year to First Nations, on a formula basis" for housing, and that "the A-Base funding levels have been fixed since the 1990s" (ISC appearance before INAN, June 3, 2024). ISC's First Nations On-Reserve Housing Program page is direct about the gap: "ISC does not cover the full cost of housing," and communities and residents are expected to draw on other sources, including shelter charges and private sector loans. The same page notes that Budget 2022 included "$157 million as a housing management subsidy to support the critical work of housing managers on reserve."
For community buildings and infrastructure, ISC uses a separate formula set out in the CFMP Cost Reference Manual for Operations and Maintenance, which defines O&M as "the day-to-day needs of the infrastructure to operate and maintain the facility." That manual's asset tables do not list housing, so do not assume the building formula applies to your homes. For a program-by-program view of capital funding for new buildings, see our separate guide to funding modular buildings for First Nations.
Does ISC's Asset Condition Reporting System inspect our homes?
Usually not, and this catches many people out. ISC's Extended Asset Condition Reporting System (E-ACRS) arranges inspections of ISC-funded infrastructure "once every 3 years." Each inspection assesses an asset's general condition, day-to-day operation and maintenance, current deficiencies, periodic replacement of major components, estimated remaining life and end-of-life considerations. First Nations and tribal councils administer and deliver the inspections, and those scheduled for an inspection can submit proposals to ISC starting April 1 of that fiscal year.
But the On-Reserve Housing Program evaluation states plainly that "housing units are not subject to Asset Condition Reporting System (ACRS) inspections." Housing condition data instead come largely from what First Nations self-report. Environmental public health inspections do not fill the gap either: ISC says "public health inspections of on-reserve housing are done upon request" and that "approximately 1 – 3% of homes on reserve are inspected a year" (INAN appearance).
The practical lesson: the triennial ACRS cycle is a useful model, but your housing department has to run its own inspection program for homes.
What should a housing maintenance plan contain?
ISC's Protocol for ISC-Funded Infrastructure applies "to all infrastructure and housing funded by ISC under the Capital Facilities and Maintenance Program." Section 5.0 asks recipients to carry out the operation and maintenance of infrastructure, housing and other funded assets "in accordance with a maintenance management plan (MMP)." Among other things, the MMP must identify "an up-to-date inventory of all infrastructure and housing assets," the maintenance activities and how often they happen, and annual operating and maintenance cost estimates. Check the protocol and your regional annex for the full list.
CMHC's Maintenance planning guide for First Nation communities explains how to build one. It recommends involving housing committee members, staff, technical services, the finance officer, and chief and council. Its Develop your maintenance plan step splits the plan in two:
- An annual plan that "will describe in detail what you propose to do in the next 12 months": priorities, work items, time frames, and the people and money needed.
- A long-term plan that "will describe at a high-level what should happen over the next 3 to 5 years."
For each task, CMHC suggests answering why it is needed, who is responsible, when it will be done, and where the people and money will come from. Inspections feed the plan: CMHC names annual inspections, physical condition reviews, and move-in and move-out inspections. The Approve, review and adjust step advises formally submitting the plan for approval, keeping a record of decisions, and reviewing it "at least once every 3 months," with progress reports made available to the community.
CMHC also describes the housing manager as the person who prepares "short- and long-term housing maintenance plans as well as capital replacement plans," and notes that health and safety "are also ensured through annual housing inspections" (Role of a First Nation housing manager). A capital replacement plan, the long-range list of when roofs, furnaces and windows will need replacing, links annual work to each home's full life.
What belongs on a cold-climate maintenance schedule?
Moisture is the main enemy. CMHC's Mould in Housing resources state that "the key to controlling mould is moisture control," and recommend dry, leak-free homes, good ventilation, heat recovery ventilation, sealed air leakage points and grading that slopes away from the foundation. After a flood or leak, CMHC's information for occupants says to "dispose of wet materials that can't dry within 48 hours."
Heat recovery ventilators (HRVs) need routine care to do their job. CMHC's How to maintain a heat recovery ventilator says "you should clean or replace your filters every 2 months" and to check the ductwork once a year. Its seven steps cover filters, outdoor intake and exhaust hoods, the condensate drain, the heat exchange core, grilles and ductwork, and fans.
CMHC's older Homebuyers Checklist includes a seasonal calendar that adapts well to a housing department's work orders. Items worth building into your schedule include:
- Fall: clean leaves out of eavestroughs, check the roof for wear or damage, close outside hose connections, and clean and restart the HRV if it was turned off.
- Early winter: check and clean the furnace and its filter, check and clean the HRV and its filter, check exhaust fans, test the space heating system, keep the gas valve clear of ice and snow, and close vents to crawl spaces.
- Spring: check the sump pump, gutters and downspouts, inspect the basement or crawl space for leaks or water, open crawl space vents, and make sure the ground slopes away from the foundation.
- Every year: test plumbing shut-off valves and the hot water tank's pressure relief valve, check smoke alarms, fire escape routes, fire extinguishers and locks, check the attic for moisture, and check the septic system (cleaning it usually about once every three years).
Treat that checklist as a starting point: it dates from the mid-2000s, so check equipment manufacturers' instructions for specific intervals.
Set clear thresholds for mould calls. ISC's Mould and your health in First Nations communities tells occupants to contact the housing manager or local Environmental Health Officer for "one or more patches of mould larger than 1 square metre," or mould that keeps coming back. Mould remediation, and the repairs needed to fix its cause, are eligible expenses under ISC's On-Reserve Housing Program and CMHC programs including the Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (INAN appearance).
Who is responsible for what: housing department or occupant?
Write it down. CMHC's First Nation housing policies development guide says "clearly written policies and procedures will help you manage your community's housing in a fair and consistent way," and that a policy should help occupants understand their role. It walks through six stages, from deciding whether you need a written policy to implementing and monitoring it, and notes that First Nation housing policies need approval in principle as well as legal review. Its write and review stage asks you to set out "any procedures that need to be followed and who is responsible for what tasks."
The lease or occupancy agreement carries that split into each home. CMHC's Tenant records page says a typical lease sets out "who's responsible for repairs and renovations," recommends inspecting each unit at move-in and move-out with the tenant present, and advises keeping "a list of all repair requests made" along with records of completed repairs, when they were done and what they cost. That repair log is also the best data you will have for next year's budget.
Occupant orientation belongs in the policy too: CMHC's mould resources stress showing occupants how the home's systems work before they move in.
What training is available for housing managers and maintenance staff?
The First Nations Housing Professionals Association (FNHPA) offers the First Nations Housing Professional (FNHP) designation. Its certification program has five courses and a final exam, plus two years of practical work experience; the Level 300 course on management of housing programs includes maintenance. FNHPA lists course exemptions for graduates of the First Nation housing programs at Vancouver Island University, SAIT and CGEP Garneau. In 2022 the First Nations Health Managers Association (FNHMA) and FNHPA signed a strategic partnership to advance healthy housing for First Nations, and FNHPA's executive director said "through certification, housing staff gain the tools needed to enhance services within their own communities."
On funding for training, CMHC's Indigenous Skills Training Program provides "$1.852 million in national funding each year" for capacity projects that support on-reserve housing. First Nations, tribal councils, Indigenous organizations and technical services groups can apply, and 2026-27 priorities include professional housing managers and effective home maintenance. The portal is currently closed; check for the next intake. CMHC has also supported students in housing manager programs at Vancouver Island University, SAIT and CEGEP-Garneau (2018 article; confirm current support). The CFMP terms and conditions also list housing training, including for community housing inspectors, as eligible.
The evaluation backs this up: it found communities with trained housing managers able to apply asset management principles delivered their housing programs more efficiently, and it recommends dedicated funding for capacity development to support the management and maintenance of housing.
What does a factory-built home change, and what doesn't it?
A factory-built home has the same systems as any other house: roof, envelope, windows, furnace or heating system, HRV, plumbing, water heater and smoke alarms. They all go on the same inspection schedule and the same capital replacement plan. Building in a plant does not remove the need for a maintenance plan, and we are not aware of any primary source showing that modular homes need less maintenance.
What changes is mostly at the start. Every Herauf unit is built as finished sections indoors and meets or exceeds CSA A277 and the National Building Code for climate zones 6 through 8, the colder end of the country. Some homes sit on the Herauf rapid portable skid system, where the skid stays under the home so it can be relocated; if you have skid homes, ask your builder what the skid and its supports need for routine checks and add it to your inventory. ISC's protocol also requires housing construction under $1.5 million to be inspected by certified inspectors at set stages, so confirm with your ISC region how those stage inspections apply to a factory-built project before you order. More on how factory building and delivery work is in our modular Indigenous housing overview and our guide to modular housing for remote communities.
Where does a builder fit in?
Herauf Modular builds homes and community buildings as finished sections in its Saskatchewan and BC plants, then delivers and sets them on site. Most builds are manufactured and delivered in about 16 weeks, while foundations, pads and services are prepared on site at the same time. Recent work includes 20 homes at Buffalo Lake Métis Settlement, delivered with CMHC and government agencies.
Herauf does not administer funding, does not apply on a community's behalf and cannot promise eligibility. If you are planning new homes and want to talk through how they will fit your maintenance plan, contact Herauf. We reply within one business day.
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Program rules change: confirm the details with the program, your Indigenous Services Canada regional office or CMHC before relying on them. Herauf does not administer any program or apply on a community's behalf.