Award-Winning Actress Andie MacDowell on

Membership at Balsam Mountain Preserve

Unique, Authentic, And Completely Unexpected

"One of the main reasons Julie and I chose Balsam Mountain Preserve as the place to build our retirement home was our intense interest in nature. We were striving to find a place where we could live in, learn about, and participate in the beauty of our surroundings".

- Sam Belfore, Ormond Beach, Florida

The lowest density private Club community in the western North Carolina mountains, just 40 minutes from downtown Asheville, Balsam Mountain Preserve offers a concept rarely found in today’s homogenized, digitized world – a true sense of place.

Marvel at the authentic and architecturally diverse homes that already nestle into this high elevation 4,400 acre private community.  Created with a commitment to preserve its natural surroundings, over 3,000 acres, or nearly 70% of the community, has been placed in a permanent conservation easement, ensuring it will never be developed and will always remain for future generations in its present park-like state.

Members select from an impressive array of family and individual activities – from championship golf and tennis courts, to miles of hiking trails and private family camping.

The selection of Real Estate offerings include dramatic mountain view Homesteads with elevations up to 4,700 feet, Featured Builder homes, and a very special Private Residence Club that is available to only 40 families.

"We had been looking for a place in the mountains for over three years, and visited just about every community imaginable. After 15 minutes, we knew we were home"

- Bill and Ohara Croswell, Ridgeland, Mississippi

Honors and Accolades for Balsam Mountain Preserve

• A ‘Vanguard Level’ Green Golf Community, Golf Course Home Network, 2009
• Best New Course in North Carolina, Business N.C. Magazine, 2009
• #2 Best Course in the Ashevile area, Business N.C. Magazine, 2010
• Top 100 Communities in the U.S., Travel + Leisure Golf, 2008, 2009.
• Best of the Best, Top 20 Communities in the U.S., Links Magazine, 2009
• Winner “Best Preservation Practices” and “Best Outdoor Fun”, Mountain Homes Magazine, 2009
• One of America's Top 100 Premier Properties, Links Magazine, 2007-2009
• “11th Best New Private Course in the U.S.”, Golf Digest, 2008

About the Developer

The Challenge Golf Group is based in Marshall, Texas, and has over thirty years experience in both commercial and residential real estate development.  Over the past three decades, the company’s principals have owned and operated a variety of successful businesses, from restaurants and manufacturing operations to high-end real estate communities. Their current portfolio of properties includes ten golf and amenity communities located in Texas, South Carolina, and North Carolina.

The company’s principals love the game of golf, but their passion is developing family lifestyle communities that not only offer a first-class golf experience, but also provide desirable amenities such as lakes and marinas, clubhouses and restaurants, equestrian centers, wellness centers, hiking trails, and much more.  Their business model places a premium on stakeholder value, which puts the company in a unique position to offer families the opportunity to become part of one of its communities today at values that were unthinkable just a few short years ago.