LAND LESSONS- What is the Maryland Agriculture Recapture Tax? 

In an effort to promote the raising of livestock or the growing of agricultural outputs such as grains, nuts, fruits and vegetables, Maryland assesses land used for productive agriculture at a lower taxable value. This yields the tax on a farmer’s field in the hundreds of dollars rather than thousands of dollars compared if the…

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LAND LESSONS- Phase One Environmental Site Assessment  

What is a Phase One Environmental Site Assessment?  You’re a developer searching for a great site for a residential community driving a road you seldom drive. You see water and sewer lines being installed, new homes under construction, as well as a new grocery-anchored shopping center.   A mile down the road, you see a homemade “For…

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LAND LESSONS- What is Lot Line Adjustment?

What is lot line adjustment?   A lot line adjustment is the process that involves altering the property lines of existing parcels of land in order to create two or more properties with different legal property boundaries than before the adjustment.   Depending on local regulations one may merge up to 4 adjoining parcels into one single…

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LAND LESSONS- What is an Acre? 

What is an Acre?  Acre comes from a term used in the Middle Ages meaning how much land a man could plough with a team of oxen during a single day – sun up to sun down. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is…

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Lots of Trouble

Selling vacant land becomes a struggle in down market Ryan Sharrow Baltimore Business Journal The Diamond Group has cut its asking price for a 2-acre lot in the city’s Morrell Park neighborhood in half. The lot has room for 20 new townhomes. Anne Arundel County home builder William Douglas Homes has four parcels of vacant…

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