Cottage Country Custom Homes - Panelized Construction Program
Project Overview
A multi-home program of custom residences in Ontario cottage country, Trent Hills and Northumberland County, delivered between 2013 and 2015 using panelized construction. Homes ranged from 3,000 to 3,500 sq ft at values up to $1,500,000, and the program is the clearest demonstration of why the method matters on rural and seasonal sites.
Panelized construction prefabricates the structural wall and floor panels off-site, in a controlled environment, and erects them on site in days. In cottage country that solves the two problems that stall conventional builds: a thin local trade base and short weather windows. Fewer on-site labour hours, a closed envelope before the weather turns, and a level of dimensional accuracy that stick-framing on a remote site rarely matches.
Terrahills designed and built each home, managing the rural approvals (private water and septic, conservation authority setbacks where lots touched water) and the logistics of moving panels and premium finishes to sites well off the main highways.
The result was a repeatable program: consistent quality across multiple homes, delivered at a custom finish standard, on sites where a one-off conventional build would have carried far more schedule and labour risk.
The Challenge
Building multiple high-value custom homes in a rural Ontario location with limited local trade availability, short seasonal weather windows and remote-site logistics, while maintaining the precision and finish quality required at up to $1.5M per home.
Our Solution
Panelized construction: structural wall and floor panels fabricated off-site under controlled conditions and erected on site in days, cutting on-site labour and build time, closing the envelope before weather, and delivering better structural accuracy and energy performance than conventional stick-frame, repeated as a program across multiple homes.
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Program | Multiple custom homes, 2013–2015 |
| Home size | 3,000 – 3,500 sq ft |
| Value | Up to $1,500,000 per home |
| Location | Trent Hills / Northumberland County, Ontario cottage country |
| Method | Panelized construction: structural wall and floor panels prefabricated off-site, erected on site |
| Why panelized | Thin rural trade base, short weather windows, remote logistics; envelope closed in days |
| Scope | Design and build; rural approvals including private servicing and setbacks |
| Outcome | Consistent custom-finish quality across the program with reduced on-site labour and schedule risk |
Program figures as recorded; individual homes varied in plan and finish.
