[Just Sold]

The "New Rules" became effective today. We had an office a meeting with one of the people who was on one of the committes that wrote a section of the rules today. There was more than one committe. He said if the lot is a new one it will be tough getting it approved if it is say <10,000 sq. ft. A lot of record will still have to comply but may not necessarily be rejected to build on.

For Islands one interesting thing is that you have to have a "plan" for bringing your construction-heavy equipment on and off shore along with a restoration plan for the first 50' it will cross. If your island is lucky enough, like on Rattlesnake's NW corner, to have a landing for such equipment that saves the expense of the plan etc.

He also said that "new" waterfront lot development will be expensive due to the new rules even if it has the frontage, setbacks and size to meet all the requirements.

Even adding a second floor without increasing the footprint of the building will require permiting from the state. One particular rule says that you can only have an impervious area equal to 20% of the total lot size. Impervious areas include the cottage/home (the area under the roof overhang and not the walls of the building) paved/stone/gravel walkways and driveways, sheds, decks, patios etc. Grass and undeveloped areas are not included. Also be aware that in the 50' set back you can only trim the low cover growth to no less than 3' in height so long as it does not cause damage to the plant. No raking or altering the 50' setbacks either. If it falls to the ground it has to stay where it fell. Trees are limited as to how much you can trim them for views. You can have a 6' wide path to the water though.

Septic requirements are tightening as well. 75' setbacks (to lot lines and water areas) and 2' above the high water table must still be met. This means smaller lots, such as <10,000 sq.ft., on some small lakes and ponds in NH may not be able to get a septic system approval which some did in the past. This could negatively effect the value of these properties and make them questionable for year round use.

Many rivers and streams are now "Protected" and fall under the Shoreland Protection Act. You may have seen these signs popping up where roads pass over them.