Unassuming Ontario house is listed for nearly six times what it sold for in 2020

From the outside, 231 Carrville Rd. looks like a pretty ordinary suburban Ontario home.

It's a detached two-storey grey house in Richmond Hill with a two-car garage, a driveway and the sort of exterior you could probably find repeated hundreds of times across the GTA.

And yet, it's currently listed for a staggering $8,800,000.

The front entrance and living room of 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

No, there isn't a secret indoor pool, a marble-clad spa or a nightclub hiding in the basement.

One of two bathrooms at 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

In fact, the house itself has very little to do with that eye-watering asking price, although some upgrades have definitely been made.

The kitchen at 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

What you're really buying here is the land — and, more importantly, its development potential.

A main-floor bedroom at 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

According to the listing, 231 Carrville Rd. offers approximately 45 feet of frontage along Carrville Road and is already the subject of an "advanced development application."

The primary bedroom at 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

Significant planning, traffic, engineering and other technical work has apparently already been completed as part of the approval process, and the sale will be conditional on the seller obtaining site plan approval.

A home office at 231 Carrville Rd. Photo: realtor.ca

In other words, someone has already done a considerable amount of the bureaucratic legwork needed to turn this very normal-looking house into something much bigger.

However, the current $ 8.8 million asking price looks even more ambitious when you consider the property's history.

The kitchen at 225 Carrville Rd. 

The home last sold for $1.5 million in 2020, meaning its current asking price is nearly six times what someone paid for it just six years ago.

The dining room at 225 Carrville Rd. 

But even back then, the home's future as a redevelopment site was clearly the main attraction.

A bedroom at 225 Carrville Rd. 

Its old listing practically screamed at potential developers, opening with, "Invest today or regret tomorrow," before describing the property as one of the last pieces of major development land in the area.

A home office at 225 Carrville Rd. 

It also noted that neighbouring 225 Carrville Rd. was for sale, potentially creating a combined 135 feet of frontage.

A bedroom at 225 Carrville Rd. 

The listing pointed to the South Richvale location, nearby development, Hillcrest Mall across the road and the prospect of a future subway station near Yonge Street and 16th Avenue as reasons investors might want to snap it up.

The exterior of 225 Carrville Rd. 

And guess what? Six years later, 225 Carrville Rd. is for sale againtoo —also for $8,800,000.

The living room at 225 Carrville Rd. 

That brings the combined asking price of the two properties to a cool $17.6 million.

One of seven bedrooms at 225 Carrville Rd. 

And if you were curious, 225 Carrville has seen a similarly dramatic price jump. It sold for $2.7 million in 2020, meaning the two neighbouring properties changed hands for a combined $4.2 million six years ago.

The backyard of 225 Carrville Rd. 

Like its neighbour, 225 Carrville is now subject to an advanced development application, with extensive planning, traffic, engineering and other technical work already completed.

The finished basement at 225 Carrville Rd. 

It's also the larger of the two properties, with approximately 90 feet of frontage along Carrville Road. Combined with 231 Carrville's 45 feet, the two offer the same 135 feet of frontage that was already being touted to developers back in 2020.

The back of 225 Carrville Rd. 

Currently, detached houses still sit on both properties, which the listings pitch as providing "underlying asset and holding value" while approvals are finalized.

But let's be real: nobody is spending $8.8 million on either property because they really love the houses. They're paying for what could eventually replace them.

The backyard at 231 Carrville Rd. 

But is six years of planning and approvals enough to turn $4.2 million worth of real estate into $17.6 million?

Well, that's what the sellers are hoping.

The backyard of 225 Carrville Rd. 

Because it's worth remembering that $17.6 million is the asking price. Until somebody actually agrees to pay it, these two properties haven't quadrupled in value — they've only quadrupled in ambition.