Altius Architecture and Gilbert + Burke custom homebuilders teamed up to create a four-bedroom property on Chandos Lake, located about a 2.5-hour drive north of Toronto.Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
21 Luke Lane, Apsley, Ont.
Asking price: $2.8-million (Late May, 2025)
Previous asking prices: $2.95-million (Early May, 2025); $3-million (April, 2025); $3.25-million (February, 2025)
Selling price: $2.77-million (July, 2025)
Previous selling price: $194,690 (July, 2020)
Taxes: $9,256 (2024)
Property days on market: 99
Listing agents: Maryrose Coleman and Ross Halloran, Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
The action
The beauty of this four-bedroom cottage on a 1.87-acre lot on Chandos Lake was undeniable, but poor weather and a weak recreational property market led the sellers to trim its original asking price from $3.25-million to $2.8-million.
“Selling waterfront properties with winter photos is challenging because people really want to see what the lake looks like, and you can’t tell how deep it is or what the quality of the waterfront is like,” agent Maryrose Coleman said.
“Because we’re in a declining market, there was a need to price adjust.”
The property, about a 2½-hour drive from Toronto, sits next to 750 feet of environmentally protected shoreline.
“It’s a marshy area with lots of wildlife and birds,” Ms. Coleman said. “For some, that’s a drawback, because you can’t do big boating in that area. [But] if you’re a stand-up paddleboarder, canoeist, kayaker or swimmer, it’s nice not to be worried about people whipping their jet skis in front of your dock.”
The property was bought as land only in 2020 and was then developed as a new home.
There are large windows and patio doors in each room on the main floor, including the kitchen, plus the recreation area in the basement.Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
What they got
Altius Architecture and Gilbert + Burke custom home builders masterminded this two-storey cottage with 3,414 square feet of living space, including a living room and sunroom with fireplaces, a main-floor bedroom and an office upstairs with access to a rooftop terrace.
There are large windows and patio doors in each room on the main floor, including the kitchen, plus the recreation area in the basement. Glass partly lines the ceiling of the main hall and the floor of the corridor to a loft above the garage.
There are three bathrooms, a dock and a fire pit by the south-facing shoreline.
Glass partly lines the ceiling of the main hall and the floor of the corridor to a loft above the garage.Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
Sotheby’s International Realty Canada
The agent’s take
“This has such strong influences from mid-century modern design, but also Scandinavian design,” Ms. Coleman said.
“Every room has some sort of view of either the forest or the lake.”