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Recent Projects

MARKHAM
$70,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is 6.5 acres and currently consists of commercial and industrial uses. It is located just north of the Old Kennedy Road and Steeles Ave intersection. It is planned to be redeveloped into a large-scale, multi-phased development with multiple condo buildings with a total of 2,500 units.

OAKVILLE
$16,250,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is 1.5 acres and is located across from Bronte Harbour in Oakville. It currently consists of a retail plaza that will be redeveloped into a 6-storey condo building with 200 units.

DOWNTOWN TORONTO
$3,000,000


Located in downtown Toronto on Bathurst Street, just south of the intersection of Bloor and Bathurst, this property is planned to be redeveloped into a 19-storey condo building with 270 units.

BOND HEAD
$9,100,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is located in the town of Bond Head, which is just west of Bradford West Gwillimbury. It is an 11-acre parcel of vacant land that is planned to be redeveloped into a subdivision with 60 townhomes and 20 detached homes.

EAST GWILLIMBURY
$10,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is just under 100 acres and currently consists of agricultural land. It is located within walking distance of the East Gwillimbury GO Train Station and is planned to be redeveloped into a large-scale, multi-phased project consisting of retail, office, and residential uses.

MARKHAM
$31,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is 1 acre and is located on Yonge Street, just north of the Yonge and Steeles intersection. It consists of vacant land and residential homes and is planned to be redeveloped into a 36-storey condo building with 450 units.

VAUGHAN
$4,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is 2.6 acres and is located along Yonge Street in Vaughan. It currently consists of retail buildings and is planned to be redeveloped into a 16-storey condo building with 450 units.

ETOBICOKE
$14,500,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is located along Lake Shore Boulevard West in Etobicoke and currently consists of a retail plaza. It is planned to be redeveloped into a 9-storey condo building with 139 units.

CALEDONIA
$7,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is 46 acres of developable land just outside of the town of Caledonia, which is south of Hamilton. It is in an area that is being redeveloped for residential uses by some of Ontario’s largest homebuilders. The site will be redeveloped into over 450 townhomes, detached, and semi-detached homes.

AURORA
$8,850,000

LAND ACQUISITION

Located along Old Bloomington Road, between Yonge Street and Bayview Ave, this property is 7 acres and will be redeveloped into 22 large estate homes.

MILTON
$4,800,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is located just south of downtown Milton and currently consist of vacant land. The property will be redeveloped into a 7-storey condo building.

NORTH YORK
$6,700,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is well located just east of the Yonge Street and Sheppard Avenue intersection in North York. It is within walking distance of the Sheppard-Yonge subway station. It is planned to be redeveloped into an 8-storey condo building.

DOWNTOWN TORONTO
$1,800,000

LAND ACQUISITION

Located in downtown Toronto within close proximity to Ryerson University, this site will be redeveloped into a 15-storey condo building with 112 units.

MARKHAM
$49,000,000

LAND REFINANCE

This property is well located in Markham, within close proximity to the Milliken GO Station. The client intends to redevelop the site into three 25-storey condo buildings, an 8-storey condo building, and townhomes.

CATHEDRALTOWN, MARKHAM
$11,000,000

CONSTRUCTION LOAN

This project is located in the Cathedraltown community of Markham, just east of Highway 404, south of Elgin Mills Road East, and north of Major Mackenzie Road East. The client is currently constructing a 6-storey condominium building. Empirical financed $11 million of the $50 million total construction loan with another private lender.


Michael (Mickey) Baratz, CA, AMP., CPMB

Principal

416-840-6892
MBARATZ@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA
  • Graduated from the University of Toronto in 1973 specializing in Commerce and Finance.
  • Obtained Chartered Accountant degree in 1976.
  • Partner in the accounting firm of Fuller Jenks Landau from 1980 to 1988.
  • Managed and developed various real estate projects in Ontario between 1988 and 1999.
  • Director of Finance at Vector Financial Services Limited and Principal Broker responsible for all commercial lending (in excess of $2 billion) from 1999 to May 2017.
  • Memberships, past and present include:
    • CICA Institute and a variety of Committees
    • Mortgage Professionals Canada
    • Ontario Mortgage Brokers Association
    • Ontario Ministry of Finance Task Force on Mortgage Syndication
  • Hobbies and sports include spinning and boating.

Abraham (Abby) Strahl

Principal

416-840-6893
ASTRAHL@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA
  • Immigrated to Canada in 1978 from Cape Town, South Africa. Requalified as a Canadian Chartered Accountant.
  • Spent 7 years in public practice in Toronto (William Eisenberg & Co). Became Partner in 1983.
  • 1985 to 1995; Joined Rudy Bratty, a prominent real estate developer and builder as CFO. Gained a wide range of direct experience in financing, negotiation, real estate acquisition, development, and leasing.
  • 1996 to June 2017; Executive Vice President of a prominent single family office. Broad range of responsibilities including:
    • Investment portfolio management
    • Financial control and organization of a large, diversified family office
    • Estate planning (in depth)
    • Tax planning (broad)
    • Banking and negotiation of bank facilities
    • Investment experience covered a broad range of asset classes including real estate debt and equity investments
    • Helped build the mortgage book from zero in 1996 to an eight-figure portfolio based on investing in discreet individual mortgages with a due diligence overlay applied to each co-lending opportunity. Experience has been built by over 20 years of hands-on experience as a steward of the family’s capital. Experienced minimal loan loss over those 20 years.

David Strahl, LL.B

Executive Vice President – Principal Broker

416-840-6894
DSTRAHL@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA

David is one of the founding members of Empirical Capital and as the VP of Operations, he leads the Empirical team in all facets of the business, such as managing the day-to-day operations, overseeing the underwriting, and borrower/investor relations.

Previously, David obtained his LL.B. from the University of Western Ontario and articled at a prominent litigation firm in downtown Toronto. After his articling term, he decided to pursue his passion for real estate and worked closely with Mickey Baratz to learn the private lending business.

David was originally born in Cape Town, South Africa and immigrated to Canada in 1978. He competed at the 1996 Olympic Trials in the 50-metre freestyle and attended a prestigious American university on a full swimming scholarship. In his free time, David enjoys composing music/playing guitar, working out, and watching every sport imaginable.


Carol-Anne Williams

Corporate Administrator

416-840-6896 EXT. 202
CAWILLIAMS@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA

Carol-Anne joined Empirical Capital in May 2017. As Corporate Administrator, Carol-Anne thrives on the versatility that this role affords and has been an integral part of setting up Empirical’s offices. She is responsible for ensuring commercial mortgage loans are properly set-up, cultivating positive relationships with both internal and external parties, as well as ensuring mortgage-related documents for execution are accurate, complete, and processed in a timely manner. Her focus is assisting in compilation of proposals, and proofreading. She is responsible for liaison and maintaining positive relations with Empirical’s investors. Carol-Anne handles all office functions and office organization.

Carol-Anne brings more than 24 years of experience having worked for highly reputable financial and real estate companies assisting high-level and Senior Management in achieving their goals.

In addition to being a Certified Yoga instructor, Carol-Anne’s other interests include biking, walking, travelling, home décor, and learning languages.


Victoria Xie

Controller

647-706-6789
VXIE@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA

Victoria joined Empirical Capital in July 2017. As the Controller, Victoria is responsible for all aspects of accounting, including financial reporting, mortgage administration, and investor documentation.

Previously, Victoria worked as the Controller for a nonbank private mortgage lending company in Toronto, as an external auditor for accounting firms, and an internal auditor for a Fortune 500 company. Victoria holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Jinan University in China and a Master of Science in Accountancy from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the USA. Victoria has been a fully licensed Certified Public Accountant (USA) since 2009 and a fully licensed Chartered Accountant in Canada and Ontario since 2013.


Thomas Tambone

Vice President, Underwriting & Asset Management

416-840-6896 EXT. 204
TTAMBONE@EMPIRICALCAPITAL.CA

Thomas joined Empirical Capital in June 2017 after moving from Edmonton to Toronto. As the Senior Analyst, Thomas leads the underwriting of all mortgages as well as the analysis, valuation, and risk identification of the underlying real estate.

Previously, Thomas was employed as an Analyst with a national commercial mortgage brokerage firm where he developed his mortgage underwriting and analytical skills. Thomas is a graduate of the University of Alberta where he earned his Bachelor of Commerce degree with a concentration in Finance.

Thomas was originally born and spent the early part of his childhood in Toronto. Since that time he has also lived in Halifax and Edmonton. In his free time he enjoys working out, playing soccer, and exploring the city.