A New Highlands Company Wants to Watch Over Your Mountain Home While You're Away

By Jon Tharp, Broker  ·  July 6, 2026

A new Highlands company centers on a problem most second-home owners on the plateau know well: what happens to your mountain house when you are not there to look after it.

Property Stewards of Highlands celebrated its grand opening with a ribbon cutting on Tuesday, June 30, at the Highlands Community Building. The company provides professional property management and home stewardship services, helping homeowners in Macon County care for and protect their mountain properties. Highlands sits about two hours southwest of Asheville, roughly 75 miles by way of US-64, up a set of switchbacks to a plateau that hovers around 4,100 feet.

The Highlands Chamber of Commerce and the Forward Rabun/Rabun County Chamber of Commerce hosted the celebration jointly, recognizing the company's membership in both. That detail says a lot about where Highlands sits. The town is in North Carolina, but the Georgia line is close enough that business here flows easily across it, and Rabun County, Georgia, is very much part of the same economy.

What does a home stewardship company actually do?

The short answer is they watch your house when you cannot. Highlands has always been a seasonal town. A large share of the homes here belong to people who spend summers on the mountain and go elsewhere when the weather turns, or who use their place as a weekend and holiday retreat rather than a full-time residence.

That leaves a lot of houses sitting empty for long stretches. Mountain weather does not take those months off. Humidity, hard freezes, wind, falling limbs, and the slow creep of moisture all keep working whether anyone is home or not. A pipe that fails in January does a lot more damage if it is March before anyone notices.

Property stewardship fills that gap. Someone local checks on the property, coordinates maintenance and repairs, and catches the small problems before they turn into the expensive ones. For an owner who lives in Atlanta, Charlotte, or Florida, that kind of local presence is the difference between owning a mountain home and worrying about one.

Why does this kind of service matter so much in Highlands?

Highlands is not a typical small mountain town, and its real estate market reflects that. It is a longtime resort community with a high concentration of second homes, luxury properties, and seasonal residents. The Cashiers and Highlands plateau has drawn people looking for cool summers and quiet for well over a century.

That history created a specific kind of demand. When most of your housing stock belongs to people who are somewhere else half the year, an entire service economy grows up around keeping those homes in good shape. Caretakers, home watch companies, landscapers, and property managers are not a luxury here. They are part of how the town functions.

A new company entering that space, backed by two chambers of commerce, is a small sign of a healthy market. It means people are still buying homes here and putting money into keeping them protected.

What does this say about the Highlands market right now?

New service businesses tend to follow the buyers. When property management companies open and expand, it usually means homes are changing hands and owners are putting money into maintaining them for the long haul.

Highlands has held its appeal through a lot of market cycles. The elevation keeps summers mild, the plateau stays green, and the town itself has managed to keep its walkable, small-scale character even as demand has grown. Main Street still feels like Main Street.

For anyone weighing a second home on the plateau, the growth of stewardship services is worth noticing. It means the support network for absentee owners is deepening, which makes ownership from a distance more manageable than it used to be.

If a mountain home in a place like Highlands has ever crossed your mind, Jon Tharp is always glad to talk through what that could look like.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Property Stewards of Highlands do?

Property Stewards of Highlands provides professional property management and home stewardship services for mountain homeowners. That means helping people care for and protect their homes, especially the many seasonal and second-home owners who are away for long stretches. In a resort town like Highlands, where a large share of houses sit empty during the off months, a local company keeping an eye on things handles the practical realities of mountain ownership: weather, moisture, upkeep, and the small problems that turn into big ones when nobody is home to catch them early.

Is Highlands NC in Macon County or Rabun County?

Highlands is in Macon County, North Carolina. The confusion is understandable, because Highlands sits right near the Georgia state line, and Rabun County, Georgia, is just to the south. The two areas share a tight economy, which is why Property Stewards of Highlands was celebrated jointly by the Highlands Chamber of Commerce and the Forward Rabun/Rabun County Chamber of Commerce. Businesses and residents on the Highlands Plateau routinely move between the two, so a company serving one side of the line often serves the other.

How far is Highlands NC from Asheville?

Highlands is roughly two hours from Asheville by car, covering about 75 miles through the mountains. The drive runs southwest, often by way of US-64, and the last stretch climbs a series of switchbacks up to the Highlands Plateau, which sits around 4,100 feet in elevation. That distance and elevation are part of the appeal. Highlands feels tucked away and cool in summer, but it is still within reach of a regional airport and the amenities of a larger city when you need them.

Why do second-home owners in Highlands need property management?

Highlands has a large population of seasonal residents and second-home owners who spend only part of the year on the plateau. That leaves many homes empty for months at a time, exposed to mountain weather, humidity, freezing temperatures, and the wear that comes from sitting unattended. Property management and home watch services fill that gap by checking on the house, coordinating maintenance and repairs, and catching small issues before they become expensive. For owners who live hours away or in another state, having someone local and trusted on the ground brings real peace of mind.