Salt Lake City-based private equity real estate investment SilverLeaf Financial acquired two commercial loans on properties in Ohio. AmTrust Bank is the primary occupant of a 20,000 square foot office complex that backs the loan, which has a face value of $1.35m. The building is located in Shaker Heights, a suburban city of Cleveland. The second loan has a face value of $8.9m and is backed by the 300,000 square foot Woodland Mall in Bowling Green, in northwestern Ohio. The mall sits on a 50-acre site. Its tenants include Sears, Famous Footwear, Cinemark, Dunham’s Sports, and Elder-Beerman. The two loans mark the 38th and 39th SilverLeaf acquired in 2009 and the company said it intends to acquire additional first lien commercial loans during Q409. SilverLeaf also announced Chet Thomas joined the firm as senior analyst, heading the underwriting and due diligence department. He is responsible for reviewing commercial loans SilverLeaf is interested in acquiring. “Chet brings with him knowledge in the real estate development sector and hands-on training in the loan processing field, I know he will be a great asset to our team,” said CEO Shane Baldwin. Write to Austin Kilgore.