About Off-Piste Capital
Off-Piste Capital, as the definition suggests, has a tendency to deviate from what is conventional, usual, or expected, with a history of doing challenging financing, whether it be for a start-up ski resort or for a single tenant heavy industrial building with energy industry exposure at the height of the Alberta economic downturn. We are proud of our accomplishments in overcoming these challenges, often with creative debt and equity financing structures.
Licensing and Legal Information
Off-Piste Capital (OPC) and sister company Esler Resort Consulting Ltd. (ERC) are 100% owned by Michael R. Esler of Edmonton, Alberta.
Off-Piste Capital is a licenced commercial mortgage brokerage in Alberta, in good standing.
ERC and, more recently, Off-Piste Capital, are approved CMHC Mortgage Correspondents for three national Canadian financial institutions enabling them to take an application for mortgage insurance through the CMHC approval process.
Mike holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Alberta and has successfuly completed the Appraisal Institute of Canada appraisal courses and media training.
Development Partnerships / Joint Ventures
Off-Piste Capital also provides development and marketing services for real estate developments in partnerships or joint venture structures. Their most recent partnership is in a 106 unit purpose-built rental townhouse project recently completed in Greater Edmonton.
Future Business
With this unique combination of real estate lending background and real estate development including hands-on asset management, Off-Piste is well positioned to assist property developers in most aspects of real estate development. More recently, Off-Piste has been engaging to do both market research on the Seattle marketplace and assess real estate equity and debt financing opportunities.
We look forward to new challenges and opportunities. Please don’t hesitate to contact us.
History and Experience
Mike has 36 years of experience in the real estate finance, development, and resort planning/consulting field including having lived and worked in Vancouver for 18 years and is now doing a second tour in Alberta (National Energy Program refugee in early 1990’s). Over this timeframe, Mike has secured financing for approximately $3 billion for virtually every real estate asset class including:
- Shopping centres
- Heavy and light industrial
- Office buildings
- Residential condos
- Multi-family rental properties
- Single-family subdivisions
- Carwashes
- Self-storage facilities
- Resorts and hotels
Both as a direct lender with several financial institutions, as well as a mortgage banker and mortgage broker, and was one of the founding principals of the largest commercial mortgage brokerage in Canada. Mike has placed mortgages in the majority of the provinces in Canada as well as two territories and has been most active in B.C. and Alberta.
Resort Financing and Consulting
Mike has a specialty in hospitality financing and resorts resorts, having secured financing for approximately $600 million in this field including $175 milion for Revelstoke Mountain Resort (www.revelstokemountainresort.com), recently voted as Canada’s best ski resort. Mike also wrote the business and phasing plan and acted in the capacity of interim CFO during the start-up phase in 2006.
Mike is also the past President & CEO for the proposed all-season resort know as Garibaldi at Squamish located half way between Vancouver and Whistler which received it’s first level of approval (Environmental Assessment Certificate) in early 2016. Hist tasks include co-project/process management of the consulting team to prepare and submit both an Environmental Assessment Report and Master Plan for which he prepared for the Financial Viability Volume of the Master Plan. He was also a key member of the negotiation team with respect to First Nations interests.
He holds a minority interest and is in partnership with two of the wealthiest families in Canada.
Our Clients
