A 65,000-square-foot waterfront mansion, believed to be Canada's largest home, has been abandoned for over 15 years. Take a look inside.
- The Peter Grant mansion, known as Canada's largest home, has been abandoned for over a decade.
- Located on Lake Temiskaming in Ontario, the 65,000-square-foot home was never finished.
Who wouldn't be captivated by the thought of a sprawling mansion with a vast open floor plan, lakeside views, and striking modern architecture?
It's a homeowner's dream — as long as they don't mind the broken windows and scattered construction materials on the floor.
Once owned by Grant Forest Products magnate Peter Grant, the Peter Grant mansion in Haileybury, Ontario, Canada, is believed to be the largest house in the country. However, the 65,000-square-foot home has famously been abandoned and left to deteriorate over the years.
Construction on the massive home was halted amid the 2008 financial crisis and the property was never finished. What had been constructed has since fallen into ruins.
Take a look inside the abandoned Peter Grant mansion.
The Peter Grant mansion is located in Haileybury, Ontario, Canada.
CBC reported that construction on the home began after Peter Grant, a forestry magnate and president of Grant Forest Products Corporation, purchased the land for $110,000 in 2004.
The massive home's original plans included a subterranean boathouse, a golf course, and an art gallery.
The mansion sits on 43 acres of property.
The mansion, located on the edge of Lake Temiskaming in Ontario, spans 65,000 square feet.
Despite being abandoned, it's widely been reported as the largest residence in Canada.
The home was built to only have one bedroom.
Despite its massive floorplan, original plans for the home only included one large bedroom for Grant.
Amid the financial crisis of 2008, construction on the mansion came to a screeching halt.
Love Property reported that Grant was once the 87th wealthiest person in Canada, but amid the financial crisis, he faced mounting debts. In 2009, his company, Grant Forest Properties, filed for bankruptcy protection, CBC reported.
Most of the building's exterior had already been completed.
However, the building's interior remained an empty shell with half-finished walls and floors.
The property was finally put on the market in 2010.
CBC reported that the mansion was listed for $25 million, despite its status as a bare-bones property and certainly not move-in ready.
The home was sold to a Toronto-based company.
However, the company that bought the home reportedly made no major attempts to finish the project.
CBC reported in 2023 that little work had been done on the property beyond installing security cameras and fencing in an effort to keep out trespassers and "urban explorers" who wished to photograph the deteriorating mansion.
People still sneak onto the property to explore.
"Folks come into town, and they want to know where it is and [ask if they can] go have a look," Temiskaming Shores mayor Jeff Laferriere told CBC in 2023.
Some areas of the home are more hazardous than others.
In this room, cables and unfinished materials can be seen covering the floor.
Reports estimate it would cost around $1 million to finish construction.
Love Property reported that the estimated cost of finishing construction and making it livable was around $1 million.
Most of the home's windows were installed, though some have since been broken.
"It's hard to even comprehend how much is still left behind here," Jake Williams, founder of the Toronto-based Bright Sun Films, said in a video tour of the property he posted to YouTube.
Details like this large fireplace give a glimpse at how glamorous the property could have been.
"Since this building got so far in construction, many of the exterior and interior fittings were near completion," Williams said. "Utilities were even in a working state by the time of abandonment."
The home is filled with salvageable materials that could be worth upward of $1 million.
The Daily Mail reported in 2021 that after Williams spoke with engineering professors and industry experts, he estimated that the materials left behind during the mansion's construction could be worth about $1.8 million.
The home narrowly escaped repossession.
CBC reported that the town of Haileybury tried to put the home up for sale after taxes weren't paid on the property for three years.
The unpaid taxes reportedly totaled $150,000.
However, Carman Kidd, who previously served as mayor of Temiskaming Shores, told CBC that "about the last hour before it was sold off for taxes," the Toronto-based company that owned the property came forward and paid off its debts.
"They actually came forward with a cheque to pay the back taxes, so they own it free and clear again, and we'll see whether they continue to keep the taxes paid or if we put it up for tax sale again in three years' time," Kidd told CBC in 2018.
The abandoned mansion has gained a reputation in the area as an "eyesore," but one with potential.
Despite its unique features, like this massive waterfall that sits underneath the mansion, the deteriorating property has become an eyesore for the local community, especially as more graffiti markings make their way onto the exterior and interior walls.
"So now it's probably our biggest eyesore," Kidd told CBC. "People think about what it could have been when it was finished."
However, the property may finally be getting a second chance at life.
Radio Canada reported in 2023 that Texas entrepreneur Chris Fischer had taken possession of the property and planned to feature it in an upcoming reality show titled "Mansion Impossible." The show did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
A Facebook page dedicated to the show frequently posts updates on the project and states that the Fischer family will be involved in the property's renovation.
But whether Canada's largest residence will ever be finished has yet to be seen.
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