North Carolina
Commercial Property Eminent Domain Attorneys
When a road project, utility easement, or public facility affects a commercial property, the impact often goes beyond the land itself — access, visibility, and parking can all affect how a business operates and what the property is worth.
How Commercial Takings Differ from Residential Ones
Commercial eminent domain cases frequently involve more complex valuation questions than residential ones. A taking that reduces visibility from the road, limits customer access, removes parking spaces, or interrupts operations during construction can affect the value of a business as well as the value of the real estate. Retail centers, office buildings, restaurants, and industrial properties each present their own valuation issues.
Business Damages and Losses
In certain situations, a commercial property owner may be entitled to compensation beyond the value of the land or easement taken — including business-related damages and losses, relocation expenses, and damage to the remaining property, in addition to attorney and appraiser fees in some cases. Whether these categories of compensation apply depends on the specific facts of the taking and the state where the property is located.
Access, Parking, and Visibility
A taking doesn’t have to touch your building to affect your business. Losing a curb cut, a turn lane, or a row of parking spaces can change how customers reach your property — and that impact is often a central issue in valuing a commercial taking. Documenting how a project affects day-to-day operations, not just the square footage taken, is an important part of building a commercial eminent domain case.
Working With Your Business's Numbers
Commercial cases often call on appraisers, and sometimes business valuation professionals, who understand how a taking affects income-producing property. Our attorneys work alongside these experts to build the strongest possible case for what a commercial taking is really costing you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Changes to access — such as the loss of a driveway, curb cut, or turn lane — can be a significant factor in valuing a commercial taking, even if no building square footage is taken. This kind of impact should be documented and raised as part of your compensation claim.
In certain situations, business damages and losses can be part of a commercial eminent domain claim. Whether this applies, and to what extent, depends on the specific facts of your case and the law of the state where your property is located.
This is a partial taking. You may be entitled to compensation for the parking area itself, as well as damages if the loss of parking reduces the value or usability of the remaining commercial property.
Relocation expenses can be a component of compensation in some eminent domain cases, depending on the circumstances of the taking and applicable law. An attorney can review your specific situation to explain what may be available.
Not every case requires one, but for takings that affect an operating business — not just vacant commercial land — a valuation professional can help demonstrate the full financial impact of the taking.
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