DND manages about 21,000 buildings on 2.2 million hectares, with a replacement value of roughly $28 billion. Its own strategy calls it “the largest real property portfolio in the Government of Canada.” A quarter of those assets are more than 50 years old, and fewer than 60% are in suitable condition. New money is now flowing, but money alone won’t fix a portfolio with this much history. The gaps are in data, maintenance discipline and delivery speed.
The state of the portfolio
DND’s infrastructure condition indicator has drifted down for years. In 2023-24, 59.81% of infrastructure was rated suitable, against a target of at least 80%. DND now calls that target unrealistic. Its 2022 real property strategy sets a more modest goal of 70% in fair-or-better condition by 2032, and warns that a large part of the portfolio will reach the end of its economic life by 2030.
The deferred maintenance bill is large. DND’s October 2024 ministerial briefing put it at about $8.2 billion for non-residential operational assets. It estimated that $1 billion to $1.5 billion would bring the unsuitable assets up to suitable condition.
View the data
| Fiscal year | Suitable condition |
|---|---|
| 2018-19 | 66% |
| 2019-20 | 64% |
| 2020-21 | 64.49% |
| 2021-22 | 64.4% |
| 2022-23 | 64.54% |
| 2023-24 | 59.81% |
Military housing: the most visible gap
The Auditor General’s October 2025 report on housing for Canadian Armed Forces members was blunt. Its headline: “National Defence is not managing housing to meet the needs” of the forces. Among its findings:
- DND had 11,741 residential units as of March 31, 2025, but only 205 were available to occupy in May 2025. There were 3,706 active applications.
- The portfolio was 5,200 to 7,200 units short of the 2019 requirement, and at least 3,800 short even after current plans.
- 66% of applicants were one-person households, but only 22% of units had one or two bedrooms.
- Only 2 of 40 sampled high-priority repairs had been completed, and 26% of homes had no up-to-date condition assessment.
- Preventive maintenance made up 27.8% of maintenance work, against an 80% target.
The response is now substantial. In February 2026, the government announced Phase 2 of military housing, valued at more than $3.7 billion across all 25 Canadian Forces Housing Agency locations, with delivery alongside Build Canada Homes using modular and prefabricated construction. In April 2026 testimony, the Deputy Minister said Phases 1 and 2 together will deliver up to 7,500 units.
Five gaps that money alone won’t close
1. Asset data you can plan from. DND’s June 2024 internal audit of defence infrastructure found that data in its maintenance management system was incomplete and unreliable, and that maintenance funding was based on the prior year’s spending. You can’t prioritize an $8.2 billion backlog without reliable condition data. On programs we’ve supported, the first deliverable that pays for itself is a clean, current asset register linked to the capital plan.
2. Preventive over reactive maintenance. A 27.8% preventive share means most maintenance is fixing failures, not preventing them. That shortens asset life and raises lifecycle cost. Shifting the mix takes multi-year funding certainty and contracts that reward planned work.
3. Speed on small projects. The same internal audit found that 4 of 12 minor recapitalization projects took 5 to 11 years from identification to implementation. Small projects are where condition is won or lost, and they need a faster, standardized path: approved scopes, framework contracts and simple schedules.
4. Delivery capacity for the surge. Defence Construction Canada’s active portfolio jumped from $10.4 billion to $19 billion in 2025-26, and it reports that recruiting construction trades is increasingly difficult. Housing, barracks, northern sites and operational facilities will all compete for the same contractors.
5. Performance management of contracted maintenance. A 2018 DND audit of contracted facilities maintenance found that none of the five sampled contracts had a formal quality assurance plan. As more work is contracted out, owners need clear performance measures, inspection regimes and reporting, or they lose visibility of the condition they’re paying to maintain.
View the data
| Fiscal year | Actual | Target |
|---|---|---|
| 2017-18 | 1.1% | 1.4% |
| 2018-19 | 1.05% | 1.4% |
| 2019-20 | 1.01% | 1.4% |
| 2020-21 | 0.71% | 2% |
| 2021-22 | 1.55% | 2% |
| 2022-23 | 1.52% | 2% |
| 2023-24 | 1.4% | 2% |
What owners on defence programs should do now
- Rebuild the condition baseline first. Prioritize condition assessments for the oldest and most mission-critical assets, and link them to the capital plan so funding follows risk.
- Set a multi-year maintenance plan with a preventive target. Fund it as a program, not year by year, and track the preventive share monthly.
- Create a fast lane for minor recapitalization. Standard scopes, pre-qualified contractors and simple integrated schedules can cut years from small projects.
- Schedule the housing program as a portfolio. With 25 locations and modular delivery, factory slots, site readiness and servicing need to be sequenced in one master schedule.
- Write measurable performance into maintenance contracts. Include quality assurance plans, response-time metrics and condition outcomes, with regular reporting to the owner.
The bottom line
DND’s real property challenge is decades in the making, and the new funding is real. The departments and contractors who fix the data, shift to preventive maintenance and speed up small projects will turn that funding into better bases and housing. Those who simply spend faster on the same system will get the same results.
Benjamin R. Consulting supports owners with portfolio scheduling, capital planning and project controls. Book a 30-minute call to discuss your real property program.
Sources: DND, Defence Real Property Portfolio Strategy (2022); DND, ministerial briefing on infrastructure (October 2024); DND, Departmental Results Report 2023-24; DND, Departmental Results Report 2019-20; DND, Departmental Plan 2024-25; Auditor General, Housing Canadian Armed Forces Members (October 21, 2025); DND, Audit of Defence Infrastructure (2024); DND, Audit of Contracted Facilities Maintenance (2018); National Defence, military housing expansion (February 24, 2026); House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, evidence (April 13, 2026); Defence Construction Canada, 2025–26 Annual Report. This article is general information, not financial or legal advice.