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Sold For: $1,040,000 List Price: $1,200,000 Built: 2009 Bedrooms: 5 Bathrooms: 3 Living Space: 4,435 sq ft Lot Size: 10.16 Days on Market: 37
Sometimes, finding the perfect home is less a transaction and more a journey. Such is the case with this architecturally significant home near Rock Hall, Maryland. Cindy Genther of Rock Hall Properties Real Estate represented the new buyers, who had been working with her for two to three years in their search for an Eastern Shore home. In this house, they found a property designed with attention to every detail, from the aesthetics of the interior floor plan, to advanced technologies that make the home as energy efficient as possible, to the location of the residence which offers incredible bay views.
Architect Kevin Shertz of Shertz Architecture and Design worked with the original owners to create a custom home that boasted several modes of energy efficiency. Joe Wey of Wey Timber Frames built the house using his signature woodworking techniques to construct a post and timber frame great room that is the heart of the home. Wey built the house over a poured concrete foundation. Structural Installation Panels (SIP)—pre-fabricated and pre-insulated concrete panels, a relatively new construction technology not typically found on the Eastern Shore—were used. SIP panels are notable for their strength, energy efficiency and cost effective installation.
The energy-efficient design included a metal roof to reflect heat from the home in the summer and absorb heat in the winter. Marvin windows were chosen for their airtight technology, as were the pull-down ladder to the attic and the custom skylights. The exterior is fiber-cement and board/batten siding with metal standing seam roofing. Brick veneer covers portions of the foundation. A large wrap-around screened porch on the first floor and a bluestone terrace on the lower level face water views and catch summer breezes.
Built on 10.16 acres of partially wooded meadowland that slopes gently to a Chesapeake Bay tidal lake, the home has approximately 4,435 sq. ft. of total finished space on two levels: 2,583 sq. ft. on the first floor with a master bedroom wing and a guest bedroom suite, and 1,852 sq. ft. on the walk-out lower level with three bedrooms and a home gym. “This home features a beautiful floor plan,” says Listing Agent Lynn Hilfiker. “It’s unusual in this area to find a home of this size with one floor living: the master suite guest suite and common areas are all on the main level, making this home suitable for enjoying over generations and aging in place.”
Five large bedrooms offer plenty of space for the new owners, as well as their family and friends. The master bedroom wing features an oversized walk-in closet with a cedar-lined closet-within-a-closet, an ensuite bathroom with double Corian sinks, an oversized shower, and separate bathrooms. The shower enclosures are upgraded, frameless Shower Guard treated glass; the showers and tub are fitted with attractive chrome grab bars. Although the master suite is on the main level, it is separated from the common areas by a stylish barn door.
The kitchen features a stainless steel Bosch duel-fuel range (gas cooktop and electric oven) with Shaker-style kitchen cabinetry. The cabinetry includes upgrades like self close, full extension drawers, a pop-up mixer shelf, lower cabinets fitted with full extension shelves, and oil rubbed bronze hardware. The floor plan allows for an enviably large pantry and separate laundry room.
The tidal lake between the house and the Chesapeake Bay provides National Geographic-worthy scenes with an abundance of wildlife, and is home to bald eagles, great blue heron, osprey, and many other birds. “The house is approximately 120 feet from the lake edge and owners have access to the bay beach by a deeded easement,” says Hilfiker. “The close proximity to the Bay shipping channel affords amazing close-up views of large, colorful cargo ships as they pass silently on their way to and from Baltimore Harbor across the bay.” The rear of the property backs up to a 200-acre farm protected by an agricultural easement.
This property is indeed unique to the Rock Hall area, not only for dreamy bay views and protection from encroachment by development, but especially for a thoughtful design/build that allowed for custom touches that make this home truly stand out from the rest.