BMO FUNDS $112M IN MAJOR LAND ACQUISITIONS IN GTA The Robins Appleby Lending Team of Leor Margulies, Ladislav Kovac, Cindy Applegath, and Natalie Mulhall assisted Bank of Montreal in funding two major land acquisition transactions in the Stouffville/Markham area in 2024. The first was completed in the summer of 2024 with BMO providing $37M for a complex share acquisition transaction involving a twenty-five acre site that was zoned and draft plan approved for a mixture of low and medium density units totalling 882 units. Subsequently, in the late Fall, the Robins Appleby lending team again represented BMO to fund a further land acquisition of a 133 acre site also in the Stouffville/Markham area by the same borrower via a $75M financing. The site had draft subdivision approvals which would ultimately result in over 1,200 apartments, towns and singles plus a large greenbelt area. There has been a dearth of land financing and acquisitions since the market downturn of April 2022, but these two major transactions give hope that there is enough confidence by at least some builders and lenders that this market is going to return and that there is value in acquiring entitled land that is ready to go to servicing and sale. LEADING THE WAY IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING At Robins Appleby, we stay on top of housing policy in Ontario and specialize in navigating complex housing initiatives that make a meaningful impact. One such initiative is the City of Toronto Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition Program (“MURA”), which provides critical financial support to non-profits, co-ops, Indigenous housing providers, and land trusts seeking to acquire apartment buildings and multi-tenant properties in order to provide below-market housing. As part of the MURA program, non-profit organizations can access deposit and pre-acquisition funding to quickly secure properties and conduct essential due diligence. However, the application process and subsequent acquisition can be intricate, requiring expertise in both financing and inter-lender coordination. That’s where we come in. Our non-profit clients have been leaders in utilizing the MURA program, and we are proud to have helped several organizations successfully navigate these opportunities. Under the guidance of partners Rachel Puma and John Fox (who leads our Affordable and Social Housing Group), the firm has now completed four MURA acquisitions for Houselink and Mainstay Community Housing and Raising the Roof Chez Toît, and we are currently assisting with two additional MURA projects. These transactions often involve CMHC-backed financing alongside MURA funding, requiring careful coordination between lenders. Our team has extensive experience resolving the complex inter-lender issues that arise, ensuring our clients’ success at every stage of the acquisition.
5 ROBINS APPLEBY LLP | LEGAL PULSE SPRING 2025
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