North of Atlanta, growing mountain community pivots to micro-modular

It’s a warm, bluebird Friday morning in the North Georgia Mountains, not far from the North Carolina line, and Brad Baso is pointing to vast ripples of preserved U.S. Forest Service land in the distance, all touched with the first burgundies and golds of autumn, while talking about mind tricks. 

Baso is a Realtor with Nourish Real Estate Group—not a magician. And the trickery in question has less to do with sleight of hand than 14-foot ceilings, huge banks of windows, oversized decks, and uncluttered floorplans that give the illusion spaces are larger than they really are, while framing the natural wonders of the Union County surroundings. 

“We let the nature around us be the artwork,” says Baso of one development philosophy at The Nest at Brannon Ridge Reserve, an evolving, tucked-away Young Harris community developed by Atlanta-based Tiny South that project leaders say is like nothing else in Georgia. 

Over the past five years, the Scandinavia-inspired project has grown from a single modern house with two bedrooms in a hair over 1,000 square feet to a full woodsy neighborhood with resort-style perks. Of 33 initial lots totaling about 42 acres—ranging from 3/4ths of an acre up to 4 acres—25 have sold to date, with some three-level homes totaling up to 2,700 square feet. Developer Kim Bucciero, a Georgia Tech grad who searched for months in the late teens for the right mountain building site, says 14 lots have been added for a new phase but that no more contiguous, undeveloped land exists. 

With the community nearing its limits, The Nest, which is closely associated with Atlanta’s MicroLife Institute, is now pivoting back to its roots, in a way. 

Six micro-modular homes—all built in Buford by Mustard Seed Tiny Homes, shipped to North Georgia, and craned into place—now dot The Nest, ranging from about 400-square-foot guesthouses to 640-square-foot, two-bedroom options. All will be showcased as part of a MicroLife Institute tour event on Saturday at The Nest, from noon to 3 p.m.  

Baso says the stick-built dwellings—dubbed “micro-luxury cabins” in marketing materials—are manufactured in a climate-controlled warehouse and can be completed while foundations are settling, allowing for quick start-to-finish turnaround times of just four months. The target demographic is people from elsewhere seeking a personal quick getaway, or short-term rental investors. The larger modular homes start at $349,000, while the least expensive site-built houses at The Nest have climbed well into the $400,000s. 

“For this neighborhood, that’s something we wanted to get back to, in terms of price,” Baso says of the modular pricing. “Everything has gone up in terms of materials and labor unfortunately.”

"Micro" might not be a misnomer in this case. But ceilings up to 10 feet and decks the size of full interiors help squash any feeling of being cramped. 

“This is too big to be a tiny house,” says Baso, in the kitchen of a modular with moody black cabinetry, oak flooring, and a window that strategically frames a distant mountaintop. “The smaller, tiny house on wheels type of thing—this is not that.”

Now counting a saltwater pool, small gym, and sauna, The Nest is situated about two hours north of Atlanta (barring traffic), or roughly 15 minutes from Blairsville. It’s marketed as a uniquely eco and design-conscious community for Georgia’s mountains, an increasingly popular second-home destination for Atlantans, Floridians, and others with the means.

The snaking main roadway is dotted with “elevated vacation rentals” and other dwellings in seven floorplans (including A-frames and a couple of container homes) that Baso says are situated to maintain the most privacy possible. 

“My biggest goal in marketing is to help people understand there’s stuff past Blue Ridge,” says Baso. “If you just go a little past Blue Ridge, your dollar goes so much further.”

Bucciero says despite the growth—a multifaceted events space called Oak & Ember recently opened, and both pond and pickleball amenities are in the works—the goal remains to keep The Nest focused on thoughtful design, respect for place, and low-impact living.  

“We’re proud to have a thoughtful mix of full-time homeowners and short-term guests who come to experience a taste of our mountain paradise,” Bucciero wrote via email. “That blend keeps the energy warm, welcoming, and alive.”

Find a photo tour of The Nest spaces both years-old and brand-new in the gallery above. 

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IF YOU GO

What: MicroLife Institute's Micro Home Tour—Luxury Edition, hosted at The Nest

When: Noon to 3 p.m., Nov. 8 (Saturday) 

Where: The Nest | 113 Dew Drop Hollow, Young Harris, Ga. 30582

What: "This exclusive event showcases six stunning micro-luxury cabins," per organizers, "each designed to prove that less space can indeed mean more life." 

Details: Ticketing info and more details are here. 

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