Treehouse-Like Home in the Blue Ridge Mountains Burt Reynolds Owned at His Peak Hits the Market
The 1970s modernist residence in Highlands, North Carolina, is asking $3.699 million.
3 min
When actor Burt Reynolds was filming what would become the 1972 hit “Deliverance,” he fell in love with the Georgia wilderness in which it was filmed.
The film would mark his breakthrough onto the big screen, after his tenure as a television star in Western shows like “Gunsmoke” and “Hawk,” and he became one of the most famous actors throughout the 1970s and ’80s
About a decade after “Deliverance,” at the peak of his career, he purchased a home in the Blue Ridge Mountains just across the border in Highlands, North Carolina, according to previous reporting.
The 1970s home was designed by modernist architect Jim Fox, whose signature blend of simplicity and flair can be seen in the home’s flared roofs, glossy wooden interiors and suspended wraparound deck.
The home, which has traded hands several times since Reynolds sold it in the 1990s, is now back on the market asking $3.699 million with Jody Lovell of Highlands Sotheby’s International Realty.
Located on a 0.9-acre lot on King Gap Road, the three-bedroom home stands within the Nantahala National Forest at the far edge of a subdivision, giving it unobstructed views of the surrounding forests and the blue mountain skyline.
The home looks like a cross between a tree house and a yacht, with curved wood-clad ceilings, wood-panelled walls and floors, and wooden built-in furniture. The prevalent wood is balanced by large glass windows and stone walls, including a double-height stone monolith that centres the home.
The uniquely shaped home features a main level, an upper level and a lower level. The main level includes the common spaces, including a sunken living room with a half-circular couch facing the stone fireplace and a large, wood-framed window wall that slants over the garage.
The lower level includes a games room, office, wine cellar and an extra stone bathroom that Reynolds’ then-wife Lori Anderson built for the actor, according to Lovell. There is still an inscription on a painted wall in the “man cave” that Anderson wrote for him, signed in 1991.
In the early 2000s, the owners at the time hired the Highlands-based Fox to add an expansion, including a terrace with a stone fireplace, a plunge pool and waterfall. That’s in addition to a wraparound deck that extends from the main level as if suspended over the mountains, surrounded by minimalist green railings.
The sellers, who couldn’t be reached for comment, purchased the property in July 2024 for $2.975 million, above the asking price, and after only a few days on the market. Due to unforeseen health issues, they are looking to unload it sooner than expected, Lovell said.
Highlands, located in the southwest corner of North Carolina, is a popular vacation spot in the South because of its surrounding natural beauty and milder mountain climate. Since the pandemic, it has received a surge of interest from further afield.
“Deliverance” was filmed in Rabun County, Georgia, the pointed northeastern of the state, which juts into North Carolina and borders South Carolina.
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Hospitality entrepreneurs Bruce and Chyka Keebaugh have set a new price benchmark for apartment living in Richmond with their purchase of a Carmine House penthouse.
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Leading Australian development manager Fortis has secured a landmark off-the-plan sale at Richmond Square, with high-profile hospitality entrepreneurs Bruce and Chyka Keebaugh purchasing a 550sqm penthouse residence in Carmine House, establishing a new price benchmark for apartment living in Richmond.
The purchase underscores the continued demand for premium, amenity-rich residences in Melbourne’s inner east.
The transaction marks a significant milestone for the $330 million mixed-use precinct, reinforcing buyer appetite for integrated, lifestyle-led developments.
Richmond Square comprises two residential offerings – Carmine House and Wiltshire House – alongside a 57-room boutique hotel, strata office space and a curated mix of retail and lifestyle operators.
As part of Carmine House, residents have access to hotel-style amenities and services, including concierge, housekeeping, dry cleaning and in-residence food and beverage delivery.
Best known for building The Big Group into one of Australia’s leading luxury hospitality and events businesses, the Keebaughs were drawn to the precinct’s integrated lifestyle offering and its proximity to Melbourne’s hospitality, cultural and sporting precincts, while remaining well connected to the Mornington Peninsula, where they spend much of their time.
As well, Chyka is well known to Australian audiences as one of the original stars of The Real Housewives of Melbourne, appearing across three seasons of the hit reality series.
Alongside her business ventures with Bruce, she has built a public profile as a lifestyle authority, authoring two books on home and entertaining, Chyka Home and Chyka Celebrate.
“We weren’t simply looking for a luxury apartment,: the couple said. “We were looking for a home that delivers an exceptional lifestyle every day. The combination of design, walkability, security and the broader precinct vision for the broader precinct immediately stood out.”
Jordan Winada, Head of Acquisitions (Commercial) Victoria at Fortis, said the result highlights evolving priorities at the top end of the market.
“This sale reinforces that premium buyers are prioritising the complete lifestyle experience,” says Winada.
“They’re increasingly looking beyond the apartment itself and assessing the quality of the surrounding neighbourhood as well.”
Sean Cussell, Director at Christie’s International Real Estate Victoria, who negotiated the transaction, said the result reflects the lack of comparable product at this level of the market.
“There’s simply no direct comparison for this in Richmond. It’s not just an apartment; it’s part of a fully integrated precinct combining residential, hotel, workplace and lifestyle amenity,” Cussell said.
“Buyers are increasingly assessing the broader offering, from amenity and walkability to service and convenience. Projects that deliver a complete lifestyle experience continue to outperform.”
The sale contributes to Fortis’ strong national performance, with the business recording more than $124 million in sales since March, the last three all record-breaking penthouse sales across the country, reflecting sustained momentum across its portfolio and continued appetite for premium, design-driven developments.
This follows Fortis’ recent record-breaking Ruby House penthouse sale in Sydney’s Double Bay, which set a new benchmark for apartment living in the suburb and underscores the strength of demand at the ultra-premium end of the market.
Richmond Square will announce its hospitality and lifestyle operators in the coming weeks as the project progresses towards completion this year.
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