We already know that reality TV dad Jon Gosselin has his own bachelor pad but now his soon-to-be ex-wfie may soon have her own home away from home. Radar Online says that Kate Gosselin is buying a condo in Rockville, Maryland, conveniently near the office of her bodyguard, Steve Neild. Sounds convenient, right? But wait, People Magazine however, says that she is not buying or renting in the area. She was just having lunch in a restaurant that sits below a bunch for condos for sale. A source tells People that is as all a big rumor and that Kate didn't even know there were apartments for sale in the area. Kate's friends say she'd never choose a place that far away from her Pennsylvania brood.

Jon Gosselin has a two-bedroom apartment at the Alexandria in New York City that he uses as a home base when he's not on daddy duty back in Pennsylvania. It is believed that he is renting. City Realty says that two-bedrooms in the building start at $1.225 million.

Folly Quarter Farm in Ellicott City, Maryland is a horse-breeding farm on 54 acres. The rolling hills hold a ten-stall horse barn and five out buildings. The stone manor house was built in 1936 by the owners of Pimlico Race Track. It is over 8000 square feet with six bedrooms and a grand style that includes marble floors, mahogany woodwork and plaster embellished ceilings. A separate guest cottage, pool and tennis court round out the estate. The listing reveals that Folly Quarter Farm was originally part of a 10,000 acre Doughregan Manor Farm owned by Charles Carroll, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. This classic horse property is listed at $17 million.
Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

Nora Roberts isn't the first author with her own hotel but she may be one of the most prolific. The popular romance novelist is, with her husband Bruce Wilder, the proud owner of the Inn BoonsBoro in Maryland. The couple bought the old in in 2007 and began fixing it up. But they ran into a snag when the hotel burst in flames in 2008 after a propane tank explosion. Like one of her indomitable heroines, Roberts was not so easily dissuaded from her dream. The hotel has opened this year offering rooms named after fictional couples and decorated in varying styles.

A Jane and Rochester room offers a canopy bed, the Nick and Nora suite is a nod to Art Deco. The rooms are not elaborately tricked out in themes, the decor is more of a subtle acknowledgment of the time period being evoked and you still get a flatscreen television in each room. Each room includes a copy of the book that inspired it and even the bathroom amenities are matched to the couple (for example, Miss Bennett and Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice are represented with the scent of English lavender). As you might expect there is also an ample library. The inn has six rooms and two suites and rates start at $220 including breakfast for two.

Want your own private island? Taylor's Island is a four and a half acre private, gated island. near Solomons Island in Maryland. The island has a main house, three outbuildings, a pool, hot tub, a pier and a sandy beach and comes with a golf cart for navigating the property. The island is accessible to the mainland over a gated wooden bridge and is also accessible by water and helicopter.

The outbuildings include a two-story observatory or lighthouse which also has a spa, kitchenette, bath and shower. There is also a two-bedroom guesthouse facing the pool. The main house is older and relatively small (2,488 square feet) and includes a deck on the river side. This property is offered for sale at 3.5 million dollars.

[Thanks, Emily]

You can get a great deal on a condo in Maryland at the end of the month. Max Spann Real Estate & Auction Company will be holding the auction of 28 waterfront condominiums at The Residences of River Marsh on Sunday, May 31, 2009, at the Loews Annapolis Hotel. The new two bedroom units at the community in Cambridge, Maryland have minimum bids starting at $75,000, which is over 75 percent off the previous asking prices from $755,685. The Residences at River Marsh complex also has a marina with 150 boat slips, 18 hole championship golf and more. Previews of the properties are happening from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm on Saturday and Sunday throughout the month of May.

Let the madness begin! Following grumblings across the country, more municipalities are starting to jump on the sin tax bandwagon ... and they're targeting us. Maryland, for example, is looking to use tax increases on tobacco (as well as alcohol and payroll) to fund health insurance via the state.

In a bout of much-welcomed civil disobedience, Davidus Cigars in Frederick and Urbana, Maryland, offers a message to his customers on its website: "CAUTION, you are about to enter the government shakedown zone."

The Maryland bill would kick the tax on cigars from 15 percent of the manufacturer's price to 90 percent. Of course, these are not the percentages that consumers would see (as a result of retailer markups), but the impact would be noticeable. Meanwhile, the cigarette tax would increase by 37.5 percent to $2.75. The State of Maryland expects these measures to generate $28 million in tax revenue.

Retailers, of course, are bleak. Davidus owner David Castro believes that the 90 percent tax rate would put him out of business. Proponents of the new expense for cigar smokers are dreaming more optimistic, claiming that cigar industry folks are "Chicken Little crying wolf."

Across the border in Pennsylvania, Governor Ed Rendell's 2009 budget would add another 36 cents per ounce to the tax on loose tobacco and the same amount for every 10 cigars. The tax on cigarettes would move from $1.35 to $1.45.

It's been a bad time for mortgage companies and few know that better than Freddie Mac CFO Anthony Piszel. Piszel is having a real estate crisis of his own, the NY Post's Gimme Shelter column reports that he has put his luxury home in posh Easton, Maryland on the market. The home is a Georgian style brick mansion on 4.5 gated acres on Maxmore Creek. It includes guest quarters an inground heated pool with brick patio and detached 3 car garage. There are six bedrooms, six baths, formal dining and living rooms, a cherry-paneled den, game/media room and a kitchen that seems rather basic except for the impressively large range. It is listed at $4.975 million.
Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

One of my favorite real estate commenters, the ever-knowledgeable Spectacular Bid led me to the news that the family of Ambassador Robert Sargent Shriver and Eunice Kennedy Shriver (sister to President John F. Kennedy) have put their Potomac, Maryland estate on the market since the family has been spending more time at other Kennedy/Shiver outposts such as Hyannispoort, Los Angeles and Miami. The home was built in 1986 for the Shrivers and is an expansive Georgian style home ranging over 16,000 square feet. The home is on nearly seven acres that include the hickory trees that Sargent Shriver had planted when the residence was constructed built and which were part of the trees on Ambassador Shriver's old family farm in Westminster, Maryland. The grounds also include a pool, pool house, tennis courts and four-car garage.

As you might imagine the home has been the site of Kennedy clan gatherings, historical events and Special Olympic fundraisers. It has 10 bedrooms and large rooms for entertaining. The current decor is exquisitely classic and items of family remembrance such as a big picture of Rose Kennedy hang proudly on the walls.

This home is listed at $11.8 million. It bears noting that Robert and Ethel Kennedy's McLean, Virginia home, Hickory Hill has been on the market for several years and has seen its asking price go from $25 million to $12.5 million.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

I've been hearing stories of Ted Koppel slashing the prices on his Potomac, Maryland home for a while and have wondered how bad it could possibly be. Finally with the news from the NY Post that the former "Nightline" host cut the price again I had to check it out. Koppel first put the home on the market in 2005 for $4.1 million and has now cut the price by over half. What's so bad about it? Let's investigate. The six-bedroom contemporary home has nearly 9,000 square feet and includes an indoor pool, a sauna, and maid's quarters. Sounds great right? The home was built in 1968 and seems to be showing its age. There's nothing particularly wrong with the home, it just seems dated from the brick fireplaces to the track lighting. Ted's home has potential though and I think some more modern furnishings could make this into a showplace. At $1.79 million, it's a lot of space for your money.

For the next couple of weeks we will be checking out some homes in the most expensive zip codes in the United States, up today, 20815. This zip code is in Chevy Chase, Maryland has a median price of $2,020,000 and an appreciation rate of 253% since 1990. This residential Maryland suburb offers easy access to Washington D.C. and is home to a variety of traditional homes.

Today's home, Wirelawn was first purchased from the Chevy Chase Land Company in 1905. It's full of political history, Harry Truman's presidential inaugural ball was held here and the home, which is now a private residence, once served as an embassy. The ten-bedoom home has a grand foyer, formal living room, formal dining room, music room (with a beautiful Egyptian-themed mural), family room and ballroom. The first floor is also home to the sunroom, kitchen, butler's pantry and mudroom. The upper levels are home to the bedrooms including the master suite with his and hers baths and dressing area, bedroom suites with sitting rooms, and staff quarters. There is also a temperature-controlled wine cellar and a gentleman's study. The 1.36 acre property includes a covered veranda off the ballroom, large heated pool and spa, three-car garage, gazebo and pool house, tented terrace and deck, a circular drive, motor court and a lawn large enough to accommodate football and soccer games, or a tennis court. This home is listed at $6.9 million.

This custom home is located in Chance Hope Farm, a small waterfront enclave that is part of St. Michaels, Maryland. Chance Hope Farm is a neighborhood of approximately 50 luxury single family homes that are all are on the water along the Miles River. This home has tranquil views of Eastern Bay and the Miles River. The 7,000 +/- sq. ft. custom built home has a beautiful sun-filled sitting room, a French country kitchen and my favorite feature, a two-story atrium library with a winding staircase. Outside there is a an inground pool, a pier and a detached three-car garage that has guest quarters. It is listed at $3.495 million.

Today's home has me pondering the problems associated with older homes. Here we have Up Holland, a nice nearly 20-acre spread near St. Michaels, Maryland. The historic home is believed to date from the late 1700s and is part of a land grant patented ca. 1667 . The six-bedroom home has been added to and modified over the years and now has a Greek Revival facade with a two story porch. The home has a formal living room and library with fireplaces and nine foot ceilings. The dining room is believed to be the oldest part of the house and has wood floors, wood-burning fireplace, old doors and a back stairway. The country kitchen has a brick fireplace and a table. The home is in need of a major overhaul, I just wonder how much can be done to bring it into the modern age. In its current state the home seems to be a patchwork of its various additions and renovations. I might direct potential new owners to Tusculum, a former estate of the day that is an older home that has been elegantly recreated. The home also has a carriage house that has two garage bays, a greenhouse/potting shed and a second floor studio. The land includes a swimming pool and pool house and a wide pier on Broad Creek provides anchorage for several boats. The home is listed at $3.485 million.

They call this one the Island Cottage because it sits on a four-acre point of land on Island Creek in Trappe, Maryland. The home is on a private tree-lined drive and has a very private feel. The four-bedroom country home is surrounded by trees with views of water, wildlife and waterfowl. it was built in 2004 and has an exterior is of brick and cedar with a roof of cedar shake and standing seam copper with antique chestnut wood which was re-milled in Pennsylvania used in the interior. The home includes a living room, a formal dining room with fireplace and lighted display cases, library and family room. There is also a cabana with a service kitchen and space for a wine room. Outside there is a pool. The overall feel is one of relaxed elegance, a family home on a slightly grand scale. This home is listed at $4.9 million.

It might look like an old English manor but Penderyn along the Wye River in Queenstown, Maryland was built in the 1980s. The Palladian lines of the home are designed to make it look like a contemporary of the 1780's Wye Hall manor. The nine-bedroom brick manor sits on a 17-acre peninsula with its own pier. The estate is named after a village in Wales. The Wye River is also named after the Wye River in Wales. The home has a 60-foot long arched hall lined with busts, urns and jars. The home is full of all sorts of antiquities including a 19th-century English chandelier by Perry and most of the fireplace fronts in the home are antique pieces from country estates in England. Other features include a bar, an observatory, formal drawing room and a marble foyer. This home is listed at $14.9 million.

An old grain silo and grain elevator in Baltimore now has new life as a luxury condominium complex. Silo Point is a $400-million development on Baltimore's waterfront. The site was once used by the Archer Daniels Midland Company to store corn, soy beans and wheat. The complex will include several phases. The first was 120 townhouses. The second will include condominiums and retail inside the grain elevator and the third part will be townhouses and apartments. For those on the higher floors it's a chance to have a view that is unmatched in the area. The condos will also preserve a bit of the feel of the old grain elevator with the concrete floors, high ceilings and exposed ductwork, Other planned amenities include rooftop gardens and a health club. The condo units range in size from 1,800 to 5,000 square feet, and will cost from the low $400,000s to $5 million.