Eminent Domain | Do You Need an Attorney?

Eminent Domain - Hiring Someone to Work for You

From a landowner's perspective, the Washington State eminent domain process can be very scary. One moment you probably were enjoying life, enjoying home or business ownership, and taking care of day to day activities. The next, some governmental entity is telling you that your property is required for use for the greater public good, that they are going to pay you fair market value for it, but that you do not have a choice about losing your property. That is quite a lot to handle.

If Your Washington State Property is Being Condemned Get Help

As a Washington State landowner, you need help for several reasons. First, landowners deserve just compensation. This is hard to achieve without an attorney or representative on your side. The issues are simply too complicated. We know what to expect, how to voice your opinions and beliefs regarding just compensation, and are familiar with the process overall. And second, I generally think this is important information.

An experienced Washington Eminent Domain Lawyer can spot damages and issues that landowners may not even know exist.

At some point I'll discuss access, severance, circuity of travel, and damages to the remainder, but until then, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. An experienced eminent domain attorney will. They will know not only what these terms mean, but will be able to spot these issues when they exist with your property. Seeing these issues, particularly if not picked up by the governmental entity, could make the difference in thousands and thousands of dollars in just compensation

An experienced Washington State eminent domain attorney can evaluate the condemning authorities offer and determine if it is fair.

Unless you are in the real estate industry you may have never come across a real estate appraisal in your life. There is nothing wrong with that, but understanding the government's appraisal is vital to receiving the compensation owed. Believing your property is worth more than the government's offer and showing it to be true are two different things. One is highly effective, the other is not

Your attorney, or a consultant, if experienced in Washington State eminent domain, will have a firm grasp not only on the appraisal method used, but the alternative methods that might help to increase your award of just compensation or settlement amount. Armed with this information, the just compensation award can often dramatically increase

Finally, your representative will also know when to accept the government's offer and stick it in the bank. There is nothing worse as an eminent domain attorney than giving a more than fair settlement to a landowner, have them refuse it because they think they are being treated unfairly, and then have the appraiser's at the condemnation hearing come back with a significantly smaller amount for just compensation. The landowner is devastated because he feels that he's been cheated, but the way the laws are set up, sometimes things that really matter to landowners are not compensable items.

The Fee Paid for Help is Worth the Additional Just Compensation in Eminent Domain.

Traditionally the fee for someone helping landowners with eminent domain matters is a contingent fee basis. This means they will not collect unless they secure an award or settlement over the initial offer. If you hire an attorney from the outset, the attorney's fee is usually 30% of whatever is received over the offer. A consultant will usually charge something closer to 20 percent (they usually cannot take the case all the way through trial, which is much more a crapshooot than simply negotiating).

This may seem like a lot of money to give up for receiving help with your Washington State eminent domain problems. But my preceding paragraphs should show you what you are getting in return. Without help getting anything extra is significantly harder - as a landowner you just don't have the background to effectively negotiate. It would be like me trying to take over a farming operation or negotiate grain prices - I have no idea what I'm doing.

The other aspect I'd ask you to remember is that the attorney is also taking some risk by not getting paid unless you do. It is possible that they could invest significant time and money in your case and have nothing materialize. Understanding this risk is part of the profession, but it does result in a slightly higher fee in the end.

Do not use your family attorney to negotiate!

If you were in Melbourne, Australia and got into trouble would you hire a United States attorney? No, you'd hire a Melbourne Lawyer. Eminent domain is highly specialized work and works the same way. If your family attorney is not familiar with it, ask him to refer you to someone who is. It can make the difference in winning and losing a lot of money. Just because someone is an attorney doesn't mean they know everything about the law. I have no clue when it comes to family law, criminal law, and securities, and I wouldn't try to help someone with those problems. Find an attorney experienced in condemnation law

Once you find someone, expect the best, but listen to what they have to say. Losing your property to condemnation can be a very trying experience, and sometimes the pain of losing the property can overshadow your better interests. Let your condemnation attorney guide you through the process, and hopefully at least you'll be able to take some more money away in the end.

Eminent Domain | Exclusions From Fair Market Value

Eminent Domain Law - Exclusions From Fair Market Value and Just Compensation.

Before I begin this post on some of the factors that are excluded in assessing fair market value, let me point out that the law in each state is different regarding these factors, this is a very general overview, and you should consult your eminent domain lawyer before implementing or excluding any of these factors from your fair market value/just compensation argument. Call me if you are in Washington State.

The whole idea behind eminent domain is that the government is afforded the power to acquire anyone's property at any time, if the right circumstances exist. Usually this means the property is required for a public use. Although the Kelo vs. City of New London case has expanded how a public use is defined, the general rule still holds true.

In acquiring property for a public use, the state of Washington may not simply seize your property. You have some power. You are afforded the right to just compensation for what is being taken from you. Just compensation is loosely based on the fair market value of the property, or what a willing buyer would pay for the property and a willing seller would sell the property for in an open market. Just compensation also includes damages to the remaining property, if they exist.

Despite this broad language regarding payment for your property, not everything that you may think contributes value to your property is a compensable item.

Length of Ownership is Not a Compensable Item in Eminent Domain.

If your family has owned a property going back generations and generations, maybe even hundreds of years, in many states this factor is not considered a compensable item, even though to you it makes the property particularly valuable.

Why is this? It goes back to the theory behind just compensation. The goal is to make the landowner whole, to give them what they had before. The fairest way to do this is to determine what the marketplace supports. The marketplace would not consider the length of familial ownership of a property, so an appraiser cannot as well.

For example, if you were to put your property up on the market today, you could command a premium for location, for zoning capabilities, for present use, for the minerals located on it, and for many other things. But the fact that the property had been in your family for years would not be a factor a buyer would consider when making an offer. As much as it stings, that factor does not contribute to the value of the property (although some states require an automatic bump in the purchase price if the land has been in the same family for 50 years or more.

The Fact that Washtington State Took your Property is Not Compensable.

As much as an appraiser would like to be able to take into account that your property is being taken against your will by the big bad government, it is not a compensable item. This should make sense going back to the theory just discussed.

And if you think about it, this makes sense. In most circumstances, whether you admit it or not, the property that is being acquired is going to be used for something that benefits the general public (99% of the time). So the greater good in this case prevails over the tribulations of the few. It may not be fair, but it makes sense, and the legislatures, acting on the fifth and fourteenth amendments to the Constitution, have not made this a compensable item.

Uses that are Remote, Speculative, or Conjectural are Not Compensable.

If your property could potentially be a new commercial or residential development site, this can be factored into the valuation of your property for just compensation purposes. This potential, in eminent domain, though, must be realistic, meaning there must be concrete facts that demonstrate the properties conduciveness to development.

For example, in some areas that are growing quickly, everyone thinks their 40 acre parcel is prime commercial development, on the cusp of being sold for $3 per square foot. It might even be two blocks from new commercial development. If your property doesn't have utilities, isn't zoned for commercial use, and could not qualify to be rezoned and get access to utilities, it would be speculative at best to value it as a commercial site. This valuation of condemnation property to determine just compensation is not allowed.

Evaluation and Negotiation of Just Compensation Offers in Washington State Eminent Domain Cases are Most Successful if these Rules are Followed.

It is possible to bring these things up in a condemnation hearing, but the likelihood is that these pleas will fall on deaf ears. To get the most value out of your property in condemnation, your best bet is to hire an experienced, realistic attorney or eminent domain consultant and do your best to present the highest value of your property and get the most money for your property taking. Doing that will ensure you get the most money for your condemned property.