At Chestnut Park Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage, our focus is you.

Welcome to Estates of Muskoka.

This site is primarily for families searching for a cottage on Muskoka’s glorious Big 3.

(Lakes Muskoka, Rosseau and Joseph).

My name is E J Gordon, and my family has been on these lakes for more than 100 years. I’m a Broker at Chestnut Park Real Estate Limited, living in the quaint village of Port Carling.

I’ve been a realtor in Muskoka for ten years. All that time I have been conducting market research targeted to the Big 3 lakes. It’s time for me to share my insights.

Muskoka’s Big 3 are Canada’s most sought after inland lakes.

But, not all locations on the Big 3 are created equal. Some locations have mitigating locational issues. Others are missing critical land attributes that slow their accrual in value compared to the average Big 3 waterfront property. What I try to find for my clients are the Big 3 properties that gain value above the average.

You notice I make no mention of the quality of the build-out when discussing accrual in value. Except for grandfathered structures the build-out has little impact on long term accrual in a value. It’s all about the land.

But, there is a new trend that flies in the face of this reality. I have observed innovative design, quality construction, and beautifully staged new structures being built on very poor quality land. This phenomenon has been happening with increasing frequency since late 2012. A big spike in “spec” building has occurred during this time. In many cases these real estate transactions will likely be a short term (albeit steep) accrual in value for the property, and not sustainable over the long haul. The Muskoka Big 3 real estate market has heated up year over year since 2012 and continues to do so. In the eyes of a significant number of first time buyers, a new build supersedes all other factors. I would not have believed this possible even a few short years ago. As a result a large number of new-build cottage sales have happened irrespective of the quality of the land they were built upon. When the next market correction occurs it will be these cottage properties that will suffer the most in lost valuation, in my opinion.

Buyers searching for a cottage on the Big 3 with all the “bells and whistles” of a new build-out, should be wary. Remember, you need to think land first.

If you’re looking to acquire a legacy property on one of the most sought after lakes in the world I can help you. If you want something incredible and an awesome investment to hand down to the next generation, then you’re in the right place.

During the course of this 2019 selling season I’m going to offer you something I’ve never done before. I’ll break-down invaluable information on how to select an “A+” type cottage property -from a land perspective.

In addition, I’m going to post my top 2 cottage listings in selected price ranges in real time, every week.

Starting July 1st this will be the place to be.

Note: I will separate the upper lakes (Rosseau and Joseph) from Lake Muskoka’s top picks as there is a difference in the price ranges. Thus there wil be a total of four Big 3 picks per price range. I will update as soon as possible if a property sells. These picks will be selected from my active files for MLS and Exclusive listings. If you want the complete file I have on any property or to view any property you’d like to see you can call my cell at 705-706-2624. Or at my office 705-765-6878 x222.