Jan 12

Added:
1/12/2012 2:02 PM 

You may have heard of eminent domain before but never really understood what it means. By definition it means “the constitutional right of the governmental agencies, public corporations (such as schools), public utilities, and public service corporations (such as railroads and hospitals) to take privately owned property for a public use or benefit with just compensation to the owner.”

The key point to this is just compensation. The governmental agency that may be taking your property must compensate you according to fair market value. Many times fair market value is determined by an appraisal or other methods are used as well such as a negotiation directly between the property owner and the governmental agency. Many of you may remember a couple years ago when the government was purchasing people’s homes off of Westnedge Avenue in Kalamazoo, MI because the I-94 highway was going to be widen and they needed more room for the off-ramp configuration. This is an example of eminent domain because it is a governmental agency needing the property to help the masses (improve the highway).

Inverse condemnation is different from eminent domain. By definition is means “legal action by a property owner who demands that his property be purchased by a public agency because he or she feels that they have somehow damaged his property.” The government may have physically damaged the property or by doing something may have caused the value of a property to decrease which equates to a “taking.”

Example: a property owner who lives next to an airport may try to force the airport to purchase his/her property, via a lawsuit, due to the noise of the low flying planes.

One thing to keep in mind in regards to inverse condemnation is that in Michigan there is something called the Governmental Tort Liability Act (GTLA) that gives the government immunity in most cases. However, there are exceptions to that act and if you feel your property is involved in inverse condemnation you need to consult with an attorney that specializes in that area of the law.

An example of an exemption would be if a public sewage or storm water system backed up or overflowed on to someone’s private property.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you experienced eminent domain or inverse condemnation, please tell us about it.

Joy Watts
Watts Realty Team
5071 Gull Road
Kalamazoo, MI 49048
269-488-1530