This form was created to enable the buyer and the seller to negotiate leased items. These items can include such as gas/oil tanks, solar panels, water treatment systems, alarms and even water tanks!

This is important to you as both a buyer or a seller. Let me give you an example to maybe help explain this.

Let's say you want to get solar panels on your home. Your choices are to purchase them outright, or to lease them from a company. If you want to move, what happens with the solar panels? If they're leased, what is the lease term? What if the lease isn't finished? If you purchased them, and they aren't paid for yet, do they have to be paid for with the proceeds of the sale? What if there isn't enough money to cover the remaining balance, or are you short selling the house?

If you're the buyer, and don't want the solar panels or the expense of the lease? Can they be removed? Would removing them damage the roof/surface and that may need to be replaced? Who is responsible for that?

The purpose of the addendum is to just make sure both parties are aware and agree to, as part of the contract, these leased types of items.

With the weather being so cold outside, it's hard to even think about gardening. But this is the perfect time to start planning for the spring! Before you know it, the seed catalogs will be in our mailboxes!

Conservation landscaping is the practice of modifying your landscape and gardens so nature can reduce pollution. It uses native plants, it helps to minimize water run off and it will conserve water.

The winter is such a fun time to start planning! Because we have such a treasure here in our backyard to protect, creating your gardens to be water wise is so important, but there are benefits to you as well! There is less maintenance over the long term, and native plants require less water (except the first year), and they use little to no fertilizer.

Planning your whole yard may seem like a daunting task, but think about choosing a small area for your first project. You can sketch up a plan for your entire yard and phase it in over time. This way you will not be overwhelmed and you will learn from trial and error from your first project.

In existing beds replace invasive non-natives with native plantings. Native plants are adaptive to local soil & climate conditions, resistant to insects & disease. They provide both ornamental & wildlife value.

Online resources for you to check out include The Chesapeake Landscape Council, Alliance for the Bay has a section on Conservation Landscaping, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service has some good tips as well.

If you have any questions, I'd love to help! Send me an email, or message me through Facebook and I'll do my best to help!

 spent a lot of time going through Historic Annapolis making sure I had documented all the different styles represented here!  It was a lot of work, but boy was it fun!

As I was just going through my notes, I saw I had this and didn't share it!  Most people don't know that the plaques on the historic homes are color coded!  The different colors help with determining the Architectural style and age!

​The markers are color-coded as follows:
• Dark Green markers : 17th century (1684-1700)
• Bronze markers:  18th-century buildings of national importance
• Brick Red markers :  designate 18th century or Georgian Federal (1700-1784)
• Blue markers:  Federal (1784-1840)
• Light Green markers: Greek Revival (1820-1860)
• Purple markers: Victorian Period (1837-1901)
• Grey markers: 19th/20th-century vernacular (1837-1930)
• Yellow markers :20th-century distinctive (1901- Present)
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There's an important legislative update I wanted everyone to be aware of.  This law took affect on October 1st, 2016.  What it provides for; it obligates the seller to inform their buyers in the contract if there are Front Foot Fees.

Front Foot Fees are created when a neighborhood adds public water and or/public sewer, and the whole neighborhood opts in.  The fee for this service is split between all the homes, and is usually paid for over a 25 to 30 year term.  This fee can be as little as a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars.  The fee follows the property, not the owner

The penalty for not disclosing the Front Foot Fee is that the buyer may cancel the contract if not disclosed prior to settlement.  And if the buyer discovers there's a fee AFTER settlement,the seller is liable for the remainder of the term.   

As an Associate Broker, these changes to the regulations is why I stay current on laws so my buyers and sellers are protected.  If you ever have any questions on Front Foot Fees or anything else in Real Estate, please feel free to call me or email me!  I'll be glad to help! 

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