Just a short drive from downtown Toronto, Ontario - one of the most cosmopolitan, livable cities in the world - is King Township, a place that, in the words of Royal LePage real estate representative Brian Marshall, "is analogous to Kentucky horse country, with wooded lands, big pastures and horse farms."

Right in the heart of King Township, surrounded by more than 500 acres of horse farms, sits the House on the Vale, a truly extraordinary home on elevn bucolic acres.

Facts and figures - nearly 8,000 square feet, six bedrooms - do not do the House on the Vale justice. "Every once in a while, a good architect will get into a zone and create something truly extraordinary," says Brian of the home's designer, Vytautas Petrulis. "That's what we did here."

The home's interior is separated in the design between public and private space. In the public areas, use of floor elevations, open staircases and light creates intuitive room separation while preserving the open nature of the home. In the private space, the bedrooms, loft, study and the design studio are delineated by variable ceiling height, alcoved hallways, and distinct elevations. The beautiful vistas of the Vale are accessed through a multitude of windows. Natural light floods the home.

Each of the home's five balconies offers a different perspective of the property. Whether overlooking the stone-terraced in-ground pool, the tennic courts, the natural woodland, horse paddocks or the river, the beauty of this estate property continually presents itself anew.

Because, as Brian says, "Toronto remains one of the most affordable major cities in the world," the House on the Vale is being offered at $2.5 million. "This home, in a similar proximity to any other major urban center in the U.S. or Europe," Brian says, "would easily start at twice the price."

For more information on the House on the Vale, click here.