Encore at Briar Chapel

Encore at Briar Chapel is a 185-home, 55+ enclave tucked inside the award-winning master-planned community of Briar Chapel, just south of Chapel Hill in Chatham County, NC. Built by David Weekley Homes between 2016 and 2024, Encore is now fully built out and settled — a tight-knit, active-adult neighborhood with its own dedicated clubhouse and amenities that also plugs into the energy and scale of the broader 1,500-acre Briar Chapel community. All homes are single-level ranches on 45-foot or 55-foot homesites, offered in two collections. The Classic Series runs roughly 1,591 to 2,408 square feet on the smaller lots, while the Tradition Series stretches from about 2,100 to 3,127 square feet on the 55-foot sites. Floor plans are open and light-filled with two to four bedrooms, two to four-and-a-half baths, and attached two-car garages. Expanded outdoor living areas, optional screened porches, and contemporary finishes are signature features, and every home meets the National Green Building Standard's minimum Bronze level — a theme that runs through all of Briar Chapel. The heart of Encore is The Club at Encore, a 3,100-square-foot clubhouse reserved exclusively for 55+ residents. It's anchored by a private saltwater pool and patio, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a group fitness/aerobics studio, a card room, a catering and entertaining kitchen, and a covered outdoor patio with a large TV. A dedicated full-time Lifestyle Director programs the social calendar — yoga, Zumba, water aerobics, Pilates, boot camp, walking groups, pickleball and tennis clinics, wine and beer socials, book clubs, board-game nights, cooking classes, and craft workshops for knitting, needlepoint, and painting. Bocce courts sit just outside the clubhouse. Encore also has its own two neighborhood parks, Pulaski Trail Park and Middleton Place Park, plus direct access to mountain-biking and hiking trails off Abercorn Circle. Because Encore sits inside Briar Chapel, residents also tap into everything the master plan offers (except the main BCCA pool complex, which is not shared). That includes The Briar Club — a LEED Silver-certified community center with a large formal lawn, indoor and outdoor kitchens, covered porches with fireplaces, a card room, bar, and aerobics/dance studio — along with two additional saltwater pools and a water park featuring a junior-Olympic lap pool, diving well, water slides, zero-entry lounge area, and splash pad. Add to that 24 miles of walking and biking trails (including 15 miles of single-track mountain-biking trails and a skills park through Bennett Mountain and Pokeberry Creek), 900 acres of preserved open space, 20+ neighborhood parks, two fenced dog parks, two community gardens, an outdoor amphitheater, a Summer Concert Series at Great Meadow Park, and community-wide tennis, pickleball, and basketball courts at the sports complex. On-site schools (preschool through charter) and The Veranda retail village at the front entrance — with restaurants, a pharmacy, salon, and eye doctor — round out the "walkable village" feel. Encore homeowners belong to two HOAs — the Encore HOA (managed by Kuester, roughly $230/month) and the Briar Chapel master HOA (roughly $151.50/month) — for a combined ~$382/month. Those dues cover front-yard lawn maintenance and irrigation, clubhouse and pool upkeep, common-area landscaping, and management. No CDD applies; property taxes are paid to Chatham County, which typically runs lower than neighboring Orange County. The location is a big part of the pitch. Encore is about 20 minutes from UNC Hospitals and UNC Chapel Hill, 15 minutes from downtown Chapel Hill and Franklin Street, and under an hour from downtown Raleigh and RDU International Airport. Jordan Lake, Finley Golf Course, and The Preserve at Jordan Lake Golf Club are all within easy reach, and US-15/501, US-64, and I-40 connect residents to Durham, Research Triangle Park, and the rest of the Triangle. Briar Chapel was named 2019 "Best Neighborhood" by Where to Retire magazine and has been voted Chapel Hill's best community for nine consecutive years — which captures how dialed-in the whole development is. Encore's own draw: luxurious single-level homes, a private 55+ clubhouse and saltwater pool, and full access to one of the most amenity-rich master plans in the Triangle.