Carving out a niche in the commercial space has helped this mortgage exec forge a multibillion-dollar career, with $1 billion funded in 2024 alone
Few, if any, sectors of the mortgage industry have been completely immune to the rising-interest rate environment of the past few years, with climbing borrowing costs pushing many clients to the sideline and weighing against funded volume.
Parts of the commercial mortgage market have been hit especially hard, but plenty of brokers operating in a niche where they know the major players and have toiled over the years to cement a solid track record have still been able to carve out success even in challenging times elsewhere.
Just ask Mike Chiu, director at the Capital West commercial brokerage. A 26-year veteran of the commercial space, he’s forged a reputation over the years as a leading expert in seniors housing – and even amid a sluggish overall mortgage market, funded $1 billion in 2024 alone as demand in that sector remained robust.
That’s because clamour for properties designed for senior living, such as long-term care homes and assisted living facilities, stayed generally high despite an overall market slowdown – and Chiu, who’s chalked up over 200 transactions worth north of $6 billion in the space since 1999, has established himself as the go-to broker for that niche.
A caveat: brokers can’t exactly jump into the sector at the drop of the hat. Chiu gained a Master’s degree in Health Service Administration from the University of Manchester before earning his licence as a commercial mortgage broker, a background that’s proven crucial in helping him develop the expertise needed to flourish in the space.
“My background’s in health service administration so I can underwrite a loan,” he told Canadian Mortgage Professional. “For some of the long-term care, your expenses can be as high as 85% of your gross revenue – so 15% profit margins. A lot of times, I’ve got to go in and help the client review staffing models and things like that.
“It’s a very hands-on, intensive business operationally and that’s where a lot of projects can fall short: who’s running it, who’s putting together your performance and things like that. And we’ve been doing this a long time. We’ve got good relationships with a lot of the appraisers so we can be very hands-on in the underwriting process.”
Why seniors housing demand remains strong despite sluggishness
In 2022, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) introduced MLI Select, a scheme aimed at encouraging the construction and preservation of affordable, energy-efficient, accessible rental housing that also applied to many seniors housing projects.
Chiu said that initiative helped spearhead continued demand for seniors housing in the immediate aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, even as interest rates began to climb – and although the national housing agency has since tightened the lending criteria for MLI Select-eligible properties, business is continuing at a steady clip.
Canada’s housing market reached a new low in March, as homebuyers continued to retreat amid mounting economic uncertainty and growing trade tensions, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).https://t.co/bAnkPSYn7l
— Canadian Mortgage Professional Magazine (@CMPmagazine) April 21, 2025
“I’d say 80% of our business volume was through CMHC for a two-year period,” Chiu said. “They’re now turning the taps off a bit. So we’re still doing a lot through CMHC, but not nearly as much as we were. But given where interest rates were, our clients still had debt and a lot of renewals coming up, so we helped them by moving non-CMHC loans into CMHC mortgage and lower rates.
“That helped with their debt coverage overall and now that rates have come off a bit, we’re seeing more acquisitions happen again. There’s [also] a lot of consolidation going on in the market – some of the larger operators have been acquiring in the last little while now that rates have dropped – so it’s fairly active.”
Deals can be more complex – but that helps build client trust
The typical length of the dealmaking process in the senior housing market is longer than others might be used to. For a quick refi where all the information is there, the loan might fund in as few as 60-90 days – but it’s not uncommon for a much lengthier wait, Chiu said, with one particular 2024 deal closing a full five years after the first construction draw.
“There can be some really extended timeframes because, as you’re probably seeing with a lot of the multifamily side in different municipalities, sometimes it’s just a very slow approval process to get everything in hand,” he said. “It’s the same thing on the seniors side: a deal could die three times before it gets resurrected, and you get everything in place.”
That can present some challenges for brokers in the space whose compensation is 100% performance-based and who don’t get paid until the loan funds. But the plus side, Chiu said, is the opportunity to develop productive and lasting relationships with individuals and businesses who’ll keep coming back when the deal finally gets over the line.
“I have probably 90% repeat business,” he said. “I’ve got some really good clients I’ve been with for well over 10 years and they just pick up the phone when they’ve got a project – or I send them monthly and quarterly updates on what’s going on in the market and things like that.
“I’ve also got conferences that I’m presenting at, so that really helps to stay top of mind for existing clients, but also for new clients to reach out once they get a better sense of what you can provide.”
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