Ashton vs Dakota vs Laurel

"The Ashton, Dakota, and Laurel sit close together in size at Forest Townhomes, which makes them the trickiest three plans to choose between. Here's the real trade-off.

The headline numbers

The Ashton is 1,674 square feet, the Laurel is 1,728, and the Dakota is 1,751 — a spread of just 77 square feet across all three. All three include a two-car garage and the same three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath count, which is exactly why buyers comparing these three plans usually end up focused on layout details rather than raw size.

Dakota: the open-concept pick

The Dakota's kitchen island is the largest of the three, and its great room, kitchen, and dining arrangement is the most open of the group — the plan most buyers point to when they want a true open-concept feel rather than a series of connected rooms. If you regularly cook while entertaining, or want sightlines from the kitchen through to the great room and dining area without a wall or half-wall breaking up the space, the Dakota's layout is built specifically around that.

Laurel: the loft pick

The Laurel is the only one of these three with a second-floor loft, plus a side-entrance garage that changes how the home presents from the street. If a flexible bonus room matters more than a slightly larger kitchen island, the Laurel is the one to walk first. The side-entrance garage is a genuine style difference too — rather than the garage door facing the street directly, it's accessed from the side, which changes the home's front elevation and, for some buyers, is a meaningful aesthetic preference in its own right.

Ashton: the straightforward pick

The Ashton follows the same core layout as its siblings without the Dakota's larger island or the Laurel's loft — a solid middle option for buyers who don't have a strong preference either way, or who'd rather not pay any premium tied to either extra feature. It's worth noting that published detail on the Ashton's specific interior flow is thinner than on the other four plans in this community; if the Ashton is a serious contender, ask directly at the model home or design studio about its layout specifics rather than relying solely on published materials.

Curious how these three compare to the smallest and largest plans in the community? the Hawthorn and Ellery comparison covers the extremes, and all five plans side by side covers the full lineup at once.

Which of the three sells first

Because these three plans sit so close in size and price, availability on any one of them can shift faster than on the Hawthorn or Ellery, which have clearer, more distinct identities in the lineup. Buyers who narrow their choice down to two of these three plans, rather than settling on just one, tend to have an easier time finding an available homesite without a long wait — worth keeping in mind if timing matters to your move.

Every plan in this trio comes with the same included features and warranty coverage, and once you're ready, here's how the buying process actually works.

The bottom line on these three

If you had to pick just one differentiator to decide on, it comes down to this: choose the Dakota if the kitchen is where your household spends the most time together, choose the Laurel if you need a dedicated bonus room the other plans can't offer, and choose the Ashton if you'd rather not pay a premium for either extra and are comfortable with a standard, well-proportioned layout. None of the three is a wrong choice — they're simply optimized for slightly different priorities within an almost identical footprint.

What buyers usually ask about upgrades

Because these three plans start so close together, a common question is whether upgrading one plan's finishes closes the gap with another. The answer is generally no — the Dakota's larger island and the Laurel's loft and side-entrance garage are structural, floor-plan-level differences, not finish-level upgrades you can add after the fact to the Ashton. If either feature genuinely matters to your daily life, it's worth choosing the plan that includes it standard rather than assuming a design-studio upgrade will bridge the gap, since these particular differences aren't available as add-on options on the other two plans.

What design-studio upgrades can meaningfully do is change the finish level within whichever plan you pick — cabinet color, countertop material, flooring, and similar selections. That's a separate decision from which of the three floor plans fits your household, and it's worth keeping those two decisions distinct rather than trying to solve a layout preference with a finish upgrade.

Considering all three against your five-year plan

A useful exercise when these three plans feel genuinely interchangeable is to think five years out rather than just about move-in day. If you expect to work from home in some capacity, or expect a family member to eventually need a dedicated space, the Laurel's loft solves a problem before it exists rather than after. If your priority is simply the best day-to-day kitchen experience for a household that cooks and gathers there often, the Dakota's larger island keeps paying off every single day you live in the home. And if neither scenario feels especially likely for you, the Ashton's straightforward layout means you're not paying for flexibility you may never use.

This kind of forward-looking comparison is worth more than most buyers give it credit for. A floor plan decision made purely on today's needs can feel limiting within a few years if a household's circumstances change, while a decision made with some room to grow tends to age better — even if it costs slightly more upfront relative to the plan that fits today's needs most tightly.

Common Questions

Ready to see Forest Townhomes for yourself? Call Simon Karim at 561-704-0091 or Compare the Ashton, Dakota and Laurel in person."