Appeal Letter

To whom it may concern:

These links and attachments are assembled to provide documentation for an appeal of the Market Value appraisal of the property at 3212 Walnut Drive, in Highland Beach, Anne Arundel County, MD. This property is in the name of Craig Herndon and Ingrid Naylor (husband and wife.)

It is my contention the property has been over-valued through various misconceptions and miscalculations.

There is a limited (seasonal partial) water view. As can be seen from the front porch pictures, there is no water view from April through November. My sense is that I have been assessed more value for this, than there is. I have no personal waterfront property.

There may also be an assessment rate issue as the property is listed as “Dual Use,” I am told that is because there is a belief that the lot (#26, recently joined) is buildable, it is not (see Ord. Rules) In addition the lot has been joined to the house seat to insure that it remain so under provisions of the Highland Beach Zoning Ordinance (page 4 of 7- Ord.Rules.PDF.) This is consistent with “Critical Area Commission” designs to limit building and runoff within the 1000ft buffer. The house is within 1000ft of Black Walnut Creek.

There have been a number homes built in the area since I built mine in 1992. The level of luxurious appointments in those homes is superior to mine. When I built my home it was in an effort to build a decent home for my family, in an area that my wife has known her whole life. At the present level of taxes I may well not be able to remain in my home.

Lastly, in the fall of 2008 I had a commercial appraisal done to get a new mortgage (process aborted.) The appraisal came in at $750,000, significantly less than the market value of $971,000 tax appraisal. I am therefore requesting my Appraisal/ Assessment be recalculated based on these considerations.

Respectfully,

Craig Herndon
craigherndon@mindspring.com
410.703.8708- cell
410.263.4028- home ofc