Thind Facing Foreclosure On Burnaby Maywood Project Acquired This Year

Another project being developed by Burnaby-based real estate developer Thind Properties is now facing insolvency proceedings, according to filings in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, adding to the embattled developer's litany of financial trouble.

Joining a list that includes the multi-phased District Northwest in Surrey, Minoru Square in Richmond, and Highline Metrotown in Burnaby, is now an unnamed project Thind Properties was planning at 6677 Silver Avenue, also known as 4330 Maywood Street, located in the Metrotown neighbourhood of Burnaby near Highline Metrotown and Metrotown Station.

The 6677 Silver Avenue site is currently occupied by an old apartment building known as Madeira Manor that was originally constructed in 1966, according to BC Assessment, which values the property at $12,218,100. The site was previously being developed by Burnaby-based Kirpal Group, who was planning a 24-storey condo project with 91 units called Contour Metrotown.

The project faced some scrutiny in 2023 as a result of a conflict between Kirpal Group and the City of Burnaby over the developer's tenant protection obligations. Shortly afterwards, the 6677 Silver Avenue property was listed for sale by Goodman Commercial with an asking price of $19,800,000 and Kirpal told STOREYS that they were moving on from the project, citing market conditions.

The Sale

The sale of the property also faced scrutiny after Goodman Commercial took Kirpal Group and its partners — Nita Developments Ltd., SVM Properties Ltd., and Madeira Manor Ltd. — to court over the sales commission.

According to Goodman Commercial's Notice of Civil Claim filed in June 2024, the owners voiced interest in retaining Goodman Commercial to sell 6677 Silver Avenue in late-2022 and then officially entered into a listing agreement in May 2023. Per their agreement, Goodman Commercial would earn a 2.0% commission on the sale price, unless the property was sold to Landa Global Properties, in which case Goodman would earn a 1.0% commission.

According to Goodman Commercial, Bancorp Financial Services indicated in July 2023 that it may initiate foreclosure proceedings against the owner pertaining to a first-ranking mortgage Bancorp held. Bancorp held off on the foreclosure and the property was ultimately sold to 1137825 BC Ltd. — a company controlled by Thind Properties Founder and CEO Daljit Thind — for $22,000,000 via a sale of the shares of Madeira Manor 2018 Ltd., the registered owner of 6677 Silver Avenue.

Goodman Commercial says that the owners accepted the offer from Thind on September 1, 2023 and that Goodman did not know about the deal until September 19. After initially denying that they had accepted the offer from Thind, Kirpal confirmed the transaction and Goodman Commercial said Kirpal recognized that they were still obligated to pay the commission.

The transaction dragged on until Kirpal informed Goodman Commercial after November 10 that the deal with Thind had fallen through. Goodman Commercial then re-commenced its marketing efforts until Kirpal asked them to cease its efforts, telling Goodman Commercial on November 30, 2023 that "We have decided to hold on to this property for now."

Thind Properties Owner, Founder, CEO, and President Daljit Thind. / Thind Properties

A few weeks later, however, Goodman Commercial discovered that a sale of the property to Thind was imminent. They then spent the subsequent months trying to confirm the details of the transaction, including speaking to Daljit Thind, who denied that he had purchased the property.

In their civil claim, Goodman Commercial said they believed Thind was introduced to the property via their listing and that the sale occurred "on substantially the same terms" as the original bid that fell through, and that they were thus owed the 2.0% commission.

In their response to the claim, Kirpal said that Goodman did not introduce Thind to them, as Thind was "an old family friend of Vineet Kirpal," one of the directors of Kirpal Group, and that the transaction occurred after the listing agreement with Goodman Commercial had ended. In July 2024, one month after Goodman filed its civil claim, Kirpal filed a counterclaim against Goodman Commercial seeking alleged damages as a result of the Certificate of Pending Litigation (CPL) that Goodman Commercial registered against the property. Kirpal has since applied to have the CPL removed, but the case remains ongoing as of this week.

Reached by STOREYS, Goodman Commercial Principal Mark Goodman declined to comment citing the ongoing nature of the case.

The Foreclosure

The 6677 Silver Avenue property and Madeira Manor 2018 Ltd. are now controlled by Thind Development (Maywood) Limited Partnership and Thind Development (Maywood) GP Ltd. according to court documents as well as BC's Land Owner Transparency Registry. The project is not listed on the company's website, but Thind Properties submitted a rezoning letter of intent to the City of Burnaby in August seeking to increase the allowable amount of strata units from 91 to 106.

All three entities are now the subject of foreclosure proceedings initiated on December 4 by Bancorp Balanced Mortgage Fund II Ltd., Bancorp Growth Mortgage Fund II Ltd., Bancorp Financial Services, as well as Strandlund Investments Ltd., a company associated with the Strandlund family that founded Victoria-based Fisgard Asset Management.

The foreclosure is pertaining to a second-ranking mortgage registered on April 11, 2024 for the principal amount of $7,900,000, with interest accruing at varying rates. Up to and including July 31, 2024, interest accrued at the higher of 15.50% per annum or the Canadian Western Bank Prime Rate + 8.30% per annum. Following that date, the interest rate escalates to the higher of 19.50% per annum or the CWB Prime Rate + 12.30% per annum.

According to the lenders, Thind has defaulted on the loan, with the lenders issuing a demand for payment on November 19. The lenders say they are now owed $8,153,010.55 as of December 3. They also note that the first-ranking mortgage for an undisclosed amount is held by Blueshore Financial Credit Union. Based on available court filings, it appears Blueshore has yet to initiate foreclosure proceedings as of December 9.

Other charges registered on the property include the CPL registered by Goodman Commercial and a builder's lien registered by Super Save Fence Rentals Inc.

The lenders will now work towards obtaining an order nisi of foreclosure from the Supreme Court that confirms the outstanding amount and sets the redemption date — the date by which the debtors can pay the outstanding amount to halt the foreclosure. If they are unable to redeem the mortgage by the set date, the lenders can then sell the property to recover what they are owed, with any sale requiring approval from the Supreme Court.

STOREYS has reached out to Thind Properties and Daljit Thind on multiple occasions over the past month and has not received any response.