Federal government releases seven standardized housing templates fit for Alberta builders

The Government of Canada has released the final details of its Housing Design Catalogue — dozens of standardized templates to help achieve housing affordability for low-density infill developments.

The Housing Design Catalogue includes a range of designs for different housing types and site conditions nationwide, including seven made specifically for Alberta. The templates address each province’s unique technical requirements, including accessibility, energy efficiency, cost, local materials, and compliance with regional codes and climate.

These standardized designs will help reduce design and construction costs, as well as simplify and accelerate housing approvals for builders who choose to use these templates.

Additionally, the templates will help estimate construction costs.

Every design comes with options to adapt floor plans, systems and other features.

For Alberta’s templates, the federal government contracted the Edmonton-based architecture firm Dub Architects.

Here are the seven templates selected for Alberta:

Accessory Dwelling Unit 01

Two bedrooms, one bathroom per unit

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Accessory Dwelling Unit 02

One bedroom, one bathroom per unit

Rowhouse 01

Two bedrooms, one bathroom per unit

Rowhouse 02

Three to four bedrooms, three bathrooms per unit

Fourplex 01

One to two bedrooms, one bathroom per unit

Fourplex 02

One to four bedrooms, one to 3.5 bathrooms per unit

Sixplex

One to three bedrooms, one to two bathrooms per unit

In preparation for the full rollout of the catalogue, the federal government is providing final renderings, floor plan layouts, and key building design details to provide builders with a head start to consider using these templates and begin planning.

The final architectural design packages — including architectural and engineering drawings and specifications — will be released in Spring 2025.

With files from Kenneth Chan