An unprecedented partnership between a North Carolina real estate developer and several community homeowners has resulted in the acquisition of Balsam Mountain Preserve, a 4,400 acre private club community between Sylva and Waynesville in western North Carolina’s mountains.
Chris Manning, a real estate entrepreneur based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, formally completed the purchase of the development on June 8 from David Carlile of Balsam Mountain Group, a Real Estate Scorecard news release reports. “An experienced developer and operator of golf courses, real estate and lifestyle communities, Manning has been involved in the development of more than 5,000 residential units in the Carolinas with a combined value of more than $450 million over the past 15 years,” the news release says.
Unique to this particular transaction is the partnership Manning created with the community’s homeowners. As a result of this alliance and the commitment to a shared vision of the future direction of the club and community, the homeowners invested in the purchase and have contributed significant capital resources to ensure a number of improvement initiatives are fully funded in advance and can be implemented immediately.
Among these initiatives are improvements to the golf course, the design and construction of a clubhouse complex and the commencement of a homebuilding project to include golf cottages and townhomes. This building program will give the community, primarily focused on attracting second home buyers, a lower maintenance product that will appeal to the family looking for more of a “lock and leave” product as opposed to a traditional single family residence.
The news release says, over the past 10 years, Balsam Mountain Preserve “has firmly established itself as one of western North Carolina’s premier club communities.”
“An authentic mountain retreat, Balsam offers its residents an astounding array of completed amenities including an award-winning Arnold Palmer Signature golf course, an Equestrian facility, a family sports camp with swim, tennis, and fitness facilities, a beautiful restaurant and lodge, and over 30 miles of private hiking, biking, and equestrian trails.”
“As we work to usher Balsam into a prosperous and successful future, maintaining the private and exclusive nature of the golf course and club is paramount to those plans,” Manning said in the announcement. “The second home and retirement market has experienced a renaissance over the past several years as real estate sales have nearly returned to the levels we saw back in 2005. With our minimal debt structure and the support we have from the homeowners, I’m confident we have the tools in place to bring long-term and lasting stability to this great club and community. It’s a formula that potential buyers can feel very good about”.