Found Spaces Realty Group
Jason Hodder
REALTOR®
Winery, Vineyard and Estate Specialist
Selling an operating winery means selling three things at once: the land, the operating assets and licences, and a working business. Jason Hodder is one of the few REALTORS® in Ontario who values and markets all three together.
Jason moved to the Niagara region from Nova Scotia in 2006 and has been a licensed REALTOR® since 2020. He is part of Ontario's farming and winemaking communities, and the wineries and vineyards he has represented now run from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Norfolk County and Georgian Bay.
Before real estate he spent two decades as a C-suite executive with full profit and loss accountability in heavy industrial and environmental services across North America. In seventeen years with a North American multinational he directed expansion strategy, managed an acquisition pipeline exceeding $200M in EBITDA, grew revenue by 575% and EBITDA by 527%, and personally negotiated multi-million dollar commercial agreements.
That background is what he brings to winery and vineyard owners now: someone who can work through the business questions behind a sale as well as the sale itself.
What our clients say
“Great experience! Jason was a tremendous help from the beginning when we were looking for a house, all through the purchase and closing of our new home.”
“Found Spaces Realty Group was an outstanding experience from start to finish. I worked with Gary and he is professional, knowledgeable, and genuinely cares about his clients. He was always responsive, answered every question with patience, and made the entire process feel smooth.”
“I had the pleasure to work with Juan Gutierrez on a condo transaction to aquire a place to live. Juan was very knowledgeable and helpful with market insights, neighborhood profiling and negotiating terms. I would recommend him and his team for any real estate help needed.”
Jason's homes
For sale153 strathcona ave nHAMILTONSee the home 
For sale3811 king streetLincolnSee the home 
For sale230 highway 20 eastFenwickSee the home Listed by Found Spaces Realty Group, Real Broker Ontario Ltd., Brokerage.
How a winery is valued: three parts
Buyers and sellers often treat a winery like any other property sale. An operating winery is three things, and an accurate value needs each one assessed on its own terms.
1. Real estate and land
The parcel and its soils, the estate buildings and any residence, and the planted vineyard acreage with its mature varietals.
2. Operating assets and inventory
Processing facilities, farm equipment and winemaking machinery, the regulatory operating licences, and the bulk and bottled wine on hand.
3. The business and the brand
Operating profit over time, wholesale and retail channels, wine club membership, awards, goodwill and reputation.
Working through all three gives a seller a value that can be defended and gives a buyer a clear picture of what the price is paying for.
Marketing built around the owner: private or public
Every winery has its own identity, operation and place in the market, so no two are marketed the same way. Jason and his team build each plan around the owner's goals and how private the sale needs to be.
Where privacy comes first, the sale is handled confidentially. Qualified buyers are approached directly through private networks, so staff, customers and the brand are not unsettled and the business keeps running as usual.
Where reach matters more, the campaign takes the property to regional, national and international buyers, including public listing channels where they fit.
Executive experience, applied to the sale
A winery sale rarely fits a standard corporate process. Jason uses his executive background on the problems owners actually face: complex partnership structures, valuing inventory across several assets, and planning the transition after closing so the handover works for the outgoing founders and the incoming owners.
Wineries and vineyards he has represented
Big Head Wines, Niagara-on-the-Lake
One of Ontario's most awarded wineries, producing about 24,000 cases a year. Home to the 2024 Best Chenin Blanc in the World, the Ontario Red Wine of the Year and the 2026 Canadian Winemaker of the Year, Andrzej Lipinski.
Harbour Estates Winery, Jordan Harbour
Represented the owners in the turnkey sale of an established 38-acre estate backing onto Jordan Harbour: 37 acres of mature Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, a 14,000 square foot production and retail building, a private residence and a 4,300 square foot maintenance and storage building.
The Good Earth Food & Wine Co., Beamsville Bench
An award-winning winery, vineyard and OpenTable top 100 restaurant on the Beamsville Bench, represented through two separate sales, in 2022 and again in 2024.
Coffin Ridge Boutique Winery, Annan (Georgian Bay)
A landmark 80-acre estate winery overlooking Georgian Bay in Grey County, drawing more than 35,000 visitors a year, with the Kilannan Brewery on site.
Burning Kiln Winery, St. Williams (Norfolk County)
A 92-acre estate in the Long Point Biosphere Reserve above the Turkey Point marshlands, built in a repurposed tobacco pack barn whose original kilns now dry grapes in the appassimento style.
3811 King Street, Lincoln
Thirty-eight acres on the Wine Route with nineteen planted to Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, approved for an estate winery and event centre.
Where he works
Niagara is home and the core of the practice: Niagara-on-the-Lake, the Beamsville Bench, Lincoln, Vineland, Jordan, Pelham and the wider region. Owners elsewhere in Ontario call on the same specialised knowledge, from Norfolk County to Georgian Bay in Grey County. See Niagara winery and estate properties.
Questions people ask
Who sells winery and vineyard properties in Niagara?
Jason Hodder of Found Spaces Realty Group specialises in winery, vineyard, farm and estate sales across Ontario, and has lived in the Niagara region since 2006. Wineries and vineyards he has represented include Big Head Wines in Niagara-on-the-Lake, The Good Earth Food & Wine Co. in Beamsville, Harbour Estates Winery in Jordan Harbour, Burning Kiln Winery in St. Williams, Coffin Ridge Boutique Winery overlooking Georgian Bay, and a 38-acre vineyard on the Wine Route in Lincoln.
How is a winery valued, and what is one actually worth?
Three things are valued together: the land, buildings and grape plantings; the regulatory licences, operating equipment and bottled and bulk wine inventory; and the operating business with its brand goodwill. The price turns on cases produced, direct-to-consumer sales and profit as much as on acreage, so a winery is a business valuation as well as a property valuation.
Can a winery be sold confidentially?
Yes. Jason Hodder builds the marketing plan around the owner's goals and privacy. A confidential sale is taken to qualified buyers privately, without a public listing, so staff, customers and the brand are not disturbed while the winery keeps operating. Owners who want reach instead get a campaign across regional, national and international channels, including public listing where it fits.
What did Jason Hodder do before real estate?
He spent twenty years as a C-suite executive with full profit and loss accountability in heavy industrial and environmental services across North America. Seventeen of those years were at a North American multinational, where he ran corporate development and mergers and acquisitions, oversaw an acquisition pipeline exceeding $200M in EBITDA, and grew revenue by 575% and EBITDA by 527%.
Does Jason Hodder only work in Niagara?
Niagara is home and the centre of the work, but Jason Hodder represents winery and estate sales across Ontario, including Coffin Ridge Boutique Winery overlooking Georgian Bay in Grey County and Burning Kiln Winery on 92 acres in Norfolk County.