Southern Calvert Land Trust Conservation

Donation of Land

Any land offered to the SCLT for consideration by the Board of Directors is first inspected and evaluated for its suitability for our program.

All donated land must be free of all legal and financial encumbrances, such as unpaid taxes or fees. The SCLT will assume all future responsibilities for the property, including its inspection, payment of taxes and road use fees.

We are a charitable organization so all transfers of property to the SCLT are fully tax deductible from federal and state taxes. Generally, the tax deduction is equal to the assessed or appraised value of the property at the time of its donation. Based on the average Calvert County assessments of undeveloped property in southern Calvert County that is not buildable, we have established a baseline value of $4,250.00 for all property between 8,000 and 40,000 square feet in area.

We ask each property donor to contribute $100 to help defray the costs of deed preparation and the recordation fee.

Buildable properties may require an appraisal to establish their value. Such appraisals are the donor's responsibility.

Conservation Easements

Donate Easement

Although we will accept donations of buildable lots and process them as described for non-buildable lots, we also hold conservation easements on these properties and allow the donor to retain ownership. We seek the donation of conservation easements on developable, environmentally-sensitive land. If the lot is of interest to the SCLT, it must be inspected by a Board member and scored according to the guidelines in the policies and procedures manual. The lot will also be photographed, as we need a record of the conditions prior to any action by the SCLT. Conservation easements require an appraisal of the property value before and after the easement is in effect. The donor must pay the cost of the appraisal.

A conservation easement allows the donor to retain ownership and control of the property but forever prevents any unauthorized development or clearing. Easements reduce the value of the property because the right to develop has been transferred to the SCLT. As a charitable organization (501©3), we hold easements in perpetuity and become partners with the property owner to ensure adherence to the terms of the easement. Conservation easement donations are fully deductible as a charitable donation for both federal and state taxes. Generally, the tax deduction is equal to the difference in the appraised value of the property before and after the easement. As a result of recent Tax Court decision, the county property tax after a conservation easement is reduced to the level of non-buildable land.

If you have a developable lot suitable for our conservation easement program, we encourage you to read our Policies and Procedures for Conservation Easements in our Policies section. If, after reading this document, you are interested in donating an easement to the SCLT, please email or mail the legal description of the property (lot, block, etc.), to us along with a copy of the deed, if available. We will be pleased to work with you to answer any questions that you have. Any land offered to the SCLT for consideration must be free of all legal and financial encumbrances.

If you are interested in offering your property to the SCLT, send any or all of the following:

A copy of deed or, if not available, the legal description of the property (lot, block, etc.), street address, Calvert County tax identification number of the property

to us by email (SCLT@HUGHES.NET)

or by the USPS (SCLT, P.O. Box 1745, Lusby, MD 20657).

We will reply within 30 days with our determination of the suitability of the property for our land donation program.