Oakwood Terrace vs. The Reserve Sawnee Plan: Townhome Showdown in Hall County

 

Oakwood Terrace by LGI Homes and the Sawnee plan at The Reserve by Century Communities are two of Hall County's most-compared new construction townhomes. Oakwood Terrace starts lower and includes more finishes standard; the Sawnee plan is larger, includes a 2-car garage, and sits inside Gainesville Township's resort-style amenity package. The right choice depends on whether budget or amenities matter more to you.

 

Both of these communities come up constantly when buyers ask me about townhomes in Hall County under $400,000, and it's easy to see why — they're both strong options, built by two very different national builders, sitting in two very different kinds of communities. I've toured both in person, and the honest answer is neither one is universally "better." They're built around genuinely different priorities, and the right choice for you depends on which of those priorities actually matters more in your day-to-day life.

Here's the full, honest comparison, not just a spec sheet side by side.

How Do Oakwood Terrace and The Reserve's Sawnee Plan Compare on Price?

 

Oakwood Terrace (LGI Homes) has priced its two floor plans roughly $323,900 to $385,900.

The Sawnee plan at The Reserve (Century Communities, Gainesville Township) has priced around $369,990 to $379,000.

At first glance, Oakwood Terrace looks like the clear budget winner, and if you're comparing its entry-level Hawthorne plan against the Sawnee plan, that's genuinely true — the Hawthorne gives you the lowest starting price point of the two communities by a meaningful margin. But once you're comparing the Sawnee plan against Oakwood Terrace's larger Laurel plan instead, the price gap narrows significantly. At that point, you're not really making a price decision anymore — you're weighing size, garage space, and amenities against each other, with price being a relatively minor differentiator.

This is exactly the kind of nuance that gets lost when buyers just compare "starting price" between two communities without asking which specific floor plan they're actually comparing.

How Do the Floor Plans Compare in Size?

Oakwood Terrace:

• Hawthorne: 3 bed, 2.5 bath, 1,740 sq ft, 1-car garage
• Laurel: 4 bed, 2.5 bath, 2,252 sq ft

The Reserve, Sawnee plan:

• 3 bed, 2.5 bath, roughly 1,842–1,855 sq ft, 2-story, 2-car garage

Square footage alone tells part of the story, but the garage situation is worth calling out specifically because it's genuinely one of the more consequential differences between these two options. The Sawnee plan's 2-car garage is a real, tangible advantage over Oakwood Terrace's Hawthorne plan, which only offers a single bay. Garage space is one of the more expensive things to add after the fact — you're not casually bolting on a second bay after closing the way you might update a light fixture — so this is worth weighing heavily if a second vehicle, storage space, or a workshop area matters to your daily life.

If you're comparing the Sawnee plan against Oakwood Terrace's Laurel plan instead, the size gap flips in Oakwood Terrace's favor by roughly 400 square feet, though you'd want to confirm current garage configuration on the Laurel plan directly, since that can vary.

What's Included Standard in Each Community?

Oakwood Terrace includes LGI's CompleteHome package as standard: granite countertops, stainless Whirlpool appliances, and a WiFi-enabled garage door opener — features some builders sell as upgrades rather than including from the start.

The Reserve includes granite countertops, stainless appliances, and luxury wood-look vinyl flooring in main living areas, with HOA-managed landscaping handling the exterior maintenance burden.

Both builders are genuinely competitive here — neither is meaningfully cutting corners on standard finishes at this price point, based on what I've seen walking both communities. This is one area where I wouldn't let the decision hinge too heavily, since you're getting comparable quality either way. The bigger differentiators are elsewhere.

How Do the Amenities Compare?

This is where the two communities genuinely diverge, and it's probably the single biggest factor in deciding between them.

Oakwood Terrace offers practical, everyday amenities: a playground, grills and BBQ pits, and a multipurpose field. These are amenities built for actual daily use — not designed primarily to look impressive in a sales brochure.

The Reserve, as part of Gainesville Township's broader master plan, gives residents access to a community pool, dog park, tennis court, pickleball court, and walking trails — a genuinely resort-style amenity package that a standalone community like Oakwood Terrace simply can't match, because it isn't part of a larger master-planned development with the scale to support that kind of infrastructure.

If amenities are a real, regular part of your lifestyle — you'll actually use the pool most weekends, you have a dog who needs a proper dog park, you play pickleball — The Reserve has a clear, meaningful edge here. But if you're honest with yourself about how often you'd actually use a resort-style amenity package versus just paying for it every month through your HOA, Oakwood Terrace's leaner package might genuinely be the smarter financial decision for your specific situation.

What About Location and Commute?

Oakwood Terrace sits in Oakwood, just off the I-985 corridor — a genuinely convenient middle-ground location between Gainesville to the north and the Flowery Branch/Buford job corridor to the south.

The Reserve sits within Gainesville Township off Old Cornelia Highway, accessed via I-985 Exit 24 — closer to central Gainesville and downtown amenities, with a short, low-friction run to the highway from the community itself.

Neither location has a dramatically worse commute profile than the other in the abstract — the real difference comes down to which direction you're actually driving each day for work, and which part of Hall County you want to be closer to for everyday errands, dining, and lifestyle. I'd genuinely recommend driving both routes yourself, at your actual commute time, before deciding based on location alone.

A Construction Perspective on Both Communities

Having walked both in person, here's what I'd flag from a construction standpoint. Both builders are established, active, national or regional production builders with a real track record — neither is a fly-by-night operation you need to worry about from a fundamentals standpoint. The differences between them are more about product philosophy than build quality: LGI leans toward bundling more into the base price with a simpler design process, while Century Communities offers more of a traditional design center experience with more room to customize, but at a correspondingly higher starting price for comparable finishes.

Whichever you choose, I'd still recommend the same pre-drywall and final walkthrough process I recommend for any new construction purchase — a strong builder reputation doesn't eliminate the value of a second set of trained eyes on your specific home before you close.

Which Community Should You Choose?

Choose Oakwood Terrace if: you want the lowest entry price point available between the two, don't need resort-style amenities in your day-to-day life, and want strong included finishes without paying an HOA premium for a large clubhouse or pool you might not use often.

Choose The Reserve's Sawnee plan if: you want a 2-car garage, genuinely value resort-style amenities like a pool, tennis, and pickleball courts, and prefer being inside a larger, more established master-planned community with more infrastructure already built out.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is Oakwood Terrace or The Reserve cheaper? Oakwood Terrace's entry-level Hawthorne plan starts lower than the Sawnee plan at The Reserve, but the gap narrows significantly when comparing Oakwood Terrace's larger Laurel plan against the Sawnee plan.

Does the Sawnee plan have a 2-car garage? Yes. This is a real advantage over Oakwood Terrace's Hawthorne plan, which has only a 1-car garage. Confirm current garage configuration for the Laurel plan directly with LGI Homes.

Which community has better amenities? The Reserve, as part of Gainesville Township, offers a pool, dog park, tennis and pickleball courts, and trails — a more extensive amenity package than Oakwood Terrace's playground, grills, and multipurpose field.

Are both communities' finishes comparable? Yes, generally. Both include granite countertops and stainless appliances as standard, though the specific package details (like LGI's WiFi garage door opener) differ slightly.

Which builder should I trust more, LGI Homes or Century Communities? Both are established, active builders with real track records in Hall County. The better fit depends on your personal priorities — price and included finishes versus size and community amenities — not one builder being objectively better than the other.

Should I still get a third-party inspection at either community? Yes. Regardless of builder reputation, a pre-drywall and final walkthrough inspection with a qualified third-party inspector is worthwhile on any new construction purchase, at either community.

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Why Work With The Flying Realtor?

What sets me apart is 20+ years of experience in all phases of new construction homes — from framing and electrical to roofing, siding, doors, windows, cabinets, and structural repairs. When I compare two communities like this, I'm looking at actual construction quality and what's genuinely included, not just repeating each sales office's pitch back to you.

That experience allows me to see beyond cosmetic finishes and provide insights that help protect one of your biggest investments — especially when you're weighing two genuinely strong options against each other.

When you work with me, you'll get honest advice, responsive communication, and a trusted advocate who is committed to helping you achieve your real estate goals — not just complete a transaction. When you allow me the opportunity to help you purchase a new construction home, you'll also receive a complimentary 3-Year Extended 2-10 Warranty that begins the moment your builder's 1-year warranty ends — real, ongoing protection at no additional cost to you.

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This guide was created by Shannon Sanborn, The Flying Realtor with eXp Realty.

With more than 20 years of construction experience and extensive knowledge of Gainesville and Hall County, Shannon helps buyers and sellers make informed real estate decisions throughout North Georgia.

Whether you're buying, selling, or exploring new construction in Gainesville, Hall County, or the surrounding area, ExploreGainesvilleGA.com is your trusted local resource.