Southern Highlands, Las Vegas: Master-Planned Living

What Southern Highlands is

Southern Highlands is a master-planned community of about 2,299 acres in the southern foothills of the Las Vegas Valley. It is in the unincorporated town of Enterprise, so it is governed by Clark County, not by the City of Las Vegas or Henderson. It is generally bounded by Interstate 15 on the east, West Cactus Avenue on the north, South Jones Boulevard on the west, and Larson Lane on the south.

The community is organized around the private Southern Highlands Golf Club. It also contains a resort, two retail centers, recreational facilities, a spa, multiple parks, two medical centers, a corporate center, a fire station, and a private security department, which makes it more self-contained than many valley neighborhoods. The community's association describes it as about 10 minutes from the Strip.

How Southern Highlands came to be

In 1996 and 1997 the Arizona-based Olympic Group completed a land exchange with the Bureau of Land Management and, in 1997, the Clark County Commission gave tentative approval to a 1,850-acre master-planned community called Olympic Highlands, with 6,000 to 8,000 homes. The name changed to Southern Highlands by November 1998, because of concerns from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. Nearby residents had raised concerns about the effect on their horse properties, views, and night skies, and the developer agreed to pay for public service improvements including upgrades to the I-15 and Lake Mead interchange.

The golf club opened in April 2000 (some sources, including Wikipedia's community entry, say 1999, but the course designers and golf publications give 2000). Construction began in 2003 on the $30 million, 21-acre Southern Highlands Marketplace, and by 2005 the community had about 7,000 homes and approval for up to 10,400. A proposed hotel-casino next to the community was delayed in 2007 and never built. Olympia Sports Park opened in August 2018.

Southern Highlands Golf Club

The golf course was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and Robert Trent Jones Jr., and it was the elder Jones's final design and one of four courses they designed together. Southern Highlands Golf Club is a private club. The neighborhood around it is a single 24-hour guard-gated community with private roads reached through three entry gates, and many homes are set back behind landscaping.

Inside that gated area is a smaller neighborhood known as The Estates at Southern Highlands, with very large homes on private drives. Whether club membership is required or optional for a particular home depends on the home and the current club documents, so ask for the membership terms and the resale package before you make an offer.

Parks, trails, and recreation

The community's website lists seven parks with covered play areas, gazebos, water features, tennis and basketball courts, and walking paths, along with two dog parks and a hiking and biking trail called the Paseo that winds through the community. Olympia Sports Park, which opened in 2018, is among the community's recreation areas.

Beyond Southern Highlands, residents are within reach of Red Rock Canyon to the west, Lake Mead to the east, and the Strip to the north. Our Las Vegas guide describes the valley's outdoor recreation.

Homes and neighborhoods

Southern Highlands includes a mix of housing: production neighborhoods built by national builders, larger semi-custom and custom homes, and the guard-gated golf club neighborhood. Lot sizes vary, and the community's website mentions custom lots from a half acre to multi-acre sizes in its estate neighborhoods.

• Production neighborhoods make up much of the community, with a range of floor plans and ages, since building began in the late 1990s.
• Custom and estate neighborhoods have larger lots and more individual designs and often have their own gates and design rules.
• The golf club neighborhood is guard-gated and has its own association structure.

Associations, assessments, and costs to check

The Southern Highlands Master Association enforces the community's covenants, conditions, and restrictions, which are provided to every potential buyer before purchase. Many neighborhoods have additional sub-associations, and the golf club neighborhood has its own. Dues, rules, reserve funding, and any special assessments vary by neighborhood and change over time, so we do not quote dues here. We obtain the current resale package for each home.

Because Southern Highlands is in unincorporated Clark County, property taxes, services, and permitting follow county rules. Nevada requires the HOA resale package to be delivered to the buyer, with a five-day cancellation window after receipt. See Check the HOA Before You Commit. Verify school zoning with the Clark County School District for the exact address.

Buying and selling in Southern Highlands with The Perna Group

Southern Highlands is large enough that the neighborhood within it matters more than the community name. We start with sales in the same neighborhood, then widen to similar lots and views.

• We confirm the gate arrangements, association structure, and any club membership requirement.
• We read the CC&Rs and design rules with you, especially on custom or larger lots.
• We plan inspections for homes built since the late 1990s, including roof, air conditioning (often multiple units), pool equipment, and solar.
• For sellers, we plan preparation, photography, and marketing around the neighborhood, lot, and view, and gather the association documents early.