• July 12th, 2011

• Author:

  Echota   

Echota is perhaps the greatest success story of any mountain community in the history of the High Country. The reasons for Echota’s success are simple. A premium, centralized location close to everything the High Country has to offer. Breathtaking, long-range mountain views. A collection of accessible, resort-style amenities. And a reasonably priced product built to appeal to families.

It sounds like a simple formula. But bringing it to fruition would take the vision, passion and considerable experience of developer Mark Harrill. A man with a passion for the North Carolina High Country.

Mark has been a resident of the area for a little over 40 years when he and his parents moved to the area from Chapel Hill. He developed a passion for the mountains that would serve him well in professional life. He founded Foscoe Realty and Development in 1987. He would introduce the world to Echota in 2001.

He had kept his eye on an extraordinary piece of land that would become Echota for years. When it became available, he jumped at the opportunity. “The property is just special,” he says.

Before planning Echota, “we belly-crawled the whole thing,” he says. The question in his mind was whether to build log homes or condominiums. Experience had taught him that men liked cabins, and women tended to prefer a community. He decided that a community featuring Adirondack-style condominiums, townhomes and single-family homesites would strike the perfect chord.

The first phase, Echota, was very well received. The second phase, Echota on the Ridge, sold 167 units in 14 months. Now, Mark Harrill is utilizing the best ideas from both phases to develop a third phase at Echota.

“We’re selling relaxed, selling decompression,” says Harrill. “We want you to be able to be yourself. We want you to know that yourself is fine.”

Echota has been named the best-planned mountain community two years in a row. Today, Echota has become the fastest selling mountain home development along the Blue Ridge Parkway—ever. Is it possible that the future is even brighter?