Received an Eminent Domain Offer in Texas?

What makes an offer bona fide

Section 21.0113 of the Property Code sets the requirements. There must be an initial written offer. The final offer must come on or after the thirtieth day following it. It must be supported by a written appraisal from a certified appraiser, and it must equal or exceed that appraisal amount. You must be given at least fourteen days to respond.

Questions to consider

• What property is included, and is it the whole tract or part?
• Is this fee title or an easement, and how wide is the strip?
• How was property value considered, and on what comparable sales?
• Was the remainder analysed, and what value was placed on the damage?
• What happens to access, fences, drainage and crossings?
• Does the offer include the temporary construction easement?
• What restrictions apply to the strip after construction?

What offers commonly leave out

Offers are prepared to a schedule and a budget. The items most often thin or absent are the ones a landowner knows best.

• Damage to the remainder on a partial taking, understated or not measured.
• Access changes, particularly on commercial frontage.
• Improvements attached to the realty, including fences, pens, wells and roads.
• The cost of working around a permanent strip afterwards.
• Easement terms that carry value even when the payment does not change.

Document checklist

• The initial written offer and the date it was delivered
• The Landowner Bill of Rights that accompanied it
• The final offer and the certified appraisal supporting it
• The proposed easement or deed, with all exhibits
• The plat or alignment sheet showing the strip on your tract
• Your own deed, survey and any prior easements of record