Phoenix Shores on Lake Oconee | Neighborhood Guide

Turn off Highway 44 at the pyramid onto Old Phoenix Road, and Phoenix Shores is about a mile down on the right, just before the Old Phoenix Road bridge. The entrance is directly across the road from Phoenix Drive and Phoenix Lake, with Misty River Landing right next door. The turn for Cuscowilla is between here and the highway.

The new Lake Oconee Publix is back at the corner of Old Phoenix Road and Highway 44, two or three minutes away, with Harmony Crossing across the highway from it.

From the docks you look west across the water toward Whippoorwill Cove, which is where the sunset views in the listings come from.

Phoenix Shores was built in two stages. The first townhomes date to 2005 and run about 1,900 square feet, with the primary suite on the main floor and two bedrooms and a loft upstairs. Some of these now list a third bedroom upstairs in place of the loft. The newer section followed in 2007 and 2008, and those units are larger, about 2,350 square feet, with four bedrooms, three and a half baths and a second living room upstairs.

The units have covered porches on the lake side, and most look out at the water from the great room and the primary bedroom. A lot of owners have renovated, so finishes vary from one unit to the next, and the prices show it.

Each townhome comes with its own assigned slip at the community docks, a short walk across the lawn.

Sidewalks run through the property to a fenced, heated pool and hot tub and a pavilion on the water with an outdoor kitchen, a stone fireplace, a big-screen TV and restrooms. Between the townhomes and the lake is a wide lawn that gets used for cornhole and football.

In 2023 the townhome exteriors and the pavilion were repainted and the entrance sign was rebuilt.

The association keeps up a pool, a hot tub, a pavilion, the docks and a lot of lawn, and the dues reflect it. The most recent listing put them at $6,200 a year, up from $3,600 a year in 2019 and 2020. Ask for the current budget and what the dues cover before you make an offer.

Phoenix Shores does not allow short-term rentals. If any rental income is part of your plan, read the covenants for the rules on longer leases before you buy.

Only a handful of units sell in a year. Since 2022 they have sold for $440,000 to $700,000, and since the start of 2024 they have sold for $600,000 to $700,000. The larger units in the newer section have sold toward the top of that range and the smaller first-section units toward the bottom, though a full renovation narrows the gap.

That is close to double what townhomes at Phoenix Cove, across the water, sell for. The difference is size, the pool and pavilion, and the main-lake position.

Buyers who want to be on the water with a boat in a slip and someone else mowing the grass. It works as a full-time home or a lock-and-leave place for weekends, and with the primary suite on the main floor, you can live on one level.

Since short-term rentals are not allowed, it suits a buyer who plans to use the place, not rent it to vacationers.