The data-backed buyer's guide to the Highlands at Manzanita: sold prices, lot trends, HOA & build rules, and current inventory from Home + Sea Realty. Updated Daily.
The Highlands at Manzanita is a modern coastal home-building community set on a high dune a half-mile inland from Manzanita Beach, and one of the last places near the village where you can still buy a lot and build. This page brings it all together for buyers and sellers in one place: recent sale prices, how lot values are moving, what the HOA requires to build, and which homes are available right now.
We sell here. Home + Sea Realty has represented buyers and sellers inside the Highlands, and broker-owner Meadow Davis, a Manzanita resident, works in this community. Below is what we'd tell a client sitting across the table from us.
The Highlands is its own market, distinct from Manzanita as a whole, made up of three named neighborhoods — Sea View, Meadows, and Hilltop. Finished homes here generally sell between the mid-$800,000s and the low-to-mid $1 millions, with the strongest ocean-oriented sites along Sea View commanding the top of that range and the Meadows homes a comfortable step below. Buildable homesites have most often changed hands in the low-to-mid six figures, with view and position driving the difference more than size alone.
The clearest way to understand this market is to see what has actually changed hands and at what price. Below, the recorded sales update themselves as new closings post — the live picture of the most recent sales alongside historic data.
Where any individual home or lot truly sits — and what that means for an offer or a list price — that's a conversation worth having with someone who follows every closing in this community.
The Highlands has a character worth understanding before you visit. This is a walkable, close-knit modern coastal neighborhood — homes built near one another on well-defined lots, with a designed, cohesive feel rather than the scattered seclusion of older coastal pockets. For buyers who want neighbors, a real sense of community, and a short walk toward the village and beach, that is exactly the appeal. The genuine ocean and mountain views are concentrated in Sea View and Hilltop, two of the development's three neighborhoods.
The ocean-oriented side of the development and its premium address, where the elevation opens up the community's real Pacific outlooks. This is where the largest and most valuable Highlands homes have changed hands.
The newest and most elevated neighborhood, platted in later phases (Highlands 4 and the recently recorded Highlands 5), with the broadest mountain-and-ocean panoramas in the development. With later phases still being brought online from the remaining acreage, Hilltop is where the freshest view-lot inventory tends to appear.
The community's most active section for both finished homes and buildable lots. The outlooks here are territorial and toward the green space rather than the ocean, and the entry point sits a step below Sea View — a strong fit for buyers who prioritize the neighborhood and walkability over a water view.
The Highlands enforces real architectural standards through its ARC (Architectural Review Committee). If you're buying a lot, budget and plan around these:
None of this should scare a serious buyer — the standards are exactly why the neighborhood holds its character and value. But they do mean lot-buyers need a broker and builder who already know the process. We do.
Q: What do homes in the Highlands at Manzanita sell for? A: Finished homes here generally trade between the mid-$800,000s and the low-to-mid $1 millions, with the strongest Sea View sites at the top of that range and Meadows homes a step below. Buildable lots have most often changed hands in the low-to-mid six figures. The recent-sales feed on this page shows the live picture as new closings record.
Q: Can I still buy a lot and build my own home here? A: Yes — and it's one of the few communities near Manzanita village where that's possible. Lots come available as later phases (Highlands 4 and 5) are platted from the development's remaining acreage. Building means working through the HOA's Architectural Review Committee, which sets coastal-design, material, and timeline standards we can guide you through.
Q: How big are the lots in the Highlands at Manzanita? A: Most homesites run roughly 7,000–9,500 square feet, with a handful of larger view parcels exceeding 10,000 square feet. Exact dimensions vary by lot and phase.
Q: How long do I have to build after buying a lot? A: The ARC sets timeline standards for completing a home after you begin construction, including finishing the exterior within six months of starting. Minimum-size and design-style requirements apply as well, and we can walk you through the current Design Guidelines before you buy a lot.
Q: What are the HOA fees? A: There's a one-time $300 Working Fund Assessment paid at closing, plus annual HOA dues set each year by the board against an approved budget. We'll confirm the current year's figure for you before you commit.
Q: Can I short-term rent a home in the Highlands at Manzanita? A: The community's CC&Rs permit short-term rentals, but city licensing is the deciding factor — and that's where to direct this question. The Highlands sits in the City of Manzanita's MH-3 zone under the city's recent middle-housing rezoning, and STR licensing, caps, and waitlists are administered (and currently being updated) by the City. Because the zoning designations changed recently, anyone counting on short-term rental income should confirm current STR eligibility for the specific parcel directly with the City of Manzanita's short-term rental office before purchasing. We're glad to point you to the right city contacts and documents as you do your due diligence.
Q: What is the Highlands at Manzanita like as a place to live? A: It's a walkable, close-knit modern coastal neighborhood rather than a secluded retreat — homes sit near one another on defined lots, giving it a cohesive, designed feel and a genuine sense of community, with the village and beach a short distance away. Buyers drawn to neighbors and walkability tend to love it; those seeking isolation usually look elsewhere on the coast.
Q: Is the Highlands in the tsunami zone? A: Its elevated dune setting places much of the community above the inundation line — a genuine draw for North Coast buyers — but it varies by lot and should be verified for the specific parcel.
Q: What's the difference between Sea View, Meadows, and Hilltop? A: The genuine ocean and mountain views are concentrated in Sea View (the ocean-oriented premium side) and Hilltop (the newest, most elevated section, with the broadest panoramas). Meadows looks toward green space and the surrounding area rather than the water and offers a more attainable entry into the same walkable neighborhood.
Q: I own a home in the Highlands — what's it worth and how do I sell it? A: Value here turns on neighborhood and view, with the ocean-oriented Sea View homes generally commanding more than those on Meadows. The most accurate way to price is against actual Highlands closings rather than broad Manzanita averages — exactly the data we follow. We provide current valuations for owners and handle the full marketing and sale.
If you're buying a lot, weighing a spec home, or selling in the Highlands, you want someone who already knows this development's streets, builders, and ARC process inside and out.
Meadow Davis is the founder and Principal Broker of Home + Sea Realty, ranked the #1 broker on the North Oregon Coast three times in the last six years and in the top eight every year for over a decade. A fourth-generation North Coast native with well over $200 million in career sales, she has personally closed transactions inside the Highlands and knows exactly how a Sea View lot differs from a Meadows lot in real dollars.
The Highlands has matured into one of Manzanita's established communities — and that is precisely the point at which deep local representation matters most, when the homes are built, the streets are set, and the question is value rather than potential. Home + Sea is locally owned and operated, based right on Laneda Avenue in Manzanita village. When you're deciding between a finished home, a spec build, and a homesite here, that on-the-ground knowledge is what turns a decision into a confident one.
Talk to Meadow about the Highlands →
If you own in the Highlands and are weighing a sale, the same local knowledge that helps buyers works in your favor as a seller. We follow every closing in this community — so we can price your Sea View, Meadows, or Hilltop home against what has genuinely sold, not against out-of-area comps that miss what sets this neighborhood apart.
Home + Sea Realty is based in Manzanita village and markets coastal listings with professional photography, drone video, and the kind of presentation that reaches the out-of-area buyers who drive this market. If you'd like a current, no-obligation valuation of your Highlands home, we'll build it from real neighborhood data.
Get a Highlands home valuation → | Talk to Meadow about selling →
