Eminent Domain and Highway Takings on Commercial Property in Virginia

When a government or a utility needs private land for a public project, a road widening, an interchange, a transmission line, it can take it through eminent domain, paying the owner just compensation. On commercial property, the most common version is a partial taking, where the state acquires a strip along the front for a highway project. That changes both the title and the value of what is left. Here is how it works in Virginia.

What eminent domain is, and partial takings

Eminent domain is the power of the government, and certain utilities, to acquire private property for public use, with compensation. The Virginia Department of Transportation uses it regularly for road projects. A full taking acquires the whole parcel, but commercial owners more often face a partial taking, where only a portion is acquired, often a frontage strip or a corner for turn lanes, leaving the owner with a smaller remainder. Permanent and temporary construction easements frequently come along with it.

Just compensation and what gets paid for

The owner is entitled to just compensation, generally the fair market value of what is taken. On a partial taking, compensation also accounts for damages to the remainder, the loss in value to the land you keep, offset by any special benefits the project brings. For a commercial property, losing frontage, parking, or visibility can hurt the remainder as much as the land actually taken, so the valuation is where these cases are usually fought.

How a taking shows up in the title

A taking becomes part of the property’s title record. The acquiring authority typically records a certificate of take or a deed conveying the acquired area, along with any permanent easements. After a project, the recorded right of way and easements run with the land and show up in the title search, so a buyer of a property near a road project needs to know exactly where the public right of way sits and what easements cross the site. We confirm the recorded takings and easements, the same way we handle any easement or access question.

Access, the remainder, and damages

Access is often the heart of a commercial taking. A project can change how vehicles enter and exit, convert a full-access entrance to right-in-right-out, or eliminate an entrance entirely, and that can reshape the value of the remainder. Sometimes a taking leaves a parcel with a title question or a boundary that needs cleaning up afterward, which can call for a quiet title action to settle the new lines. We look at what the taking did to access and to the recorded description, not just the area acquired.

Closing around a known or pending taking

If you are buying a commercial property where a road project is planned or underway, the taking is part of the deal whether you want it or not. We identify any recorded taking, pending condemnation, or planned project that affects the parcel, confirm what right of way and easements are on record, and make sure the title coverage and the survey reflect them. It fits the broader commercial closing process I describe in what is different about commercial deals, and our commercial services cover property affected by takings across Virginia.

Common questions

What is a partial taking?

When the government or a utility acquires only part of a parcel through eminent domain, such as a frontage strip for a road widening, leaving the owner with a smaller remainder. It often comes with permanent or temporary easements.

What am I paid in an eminent domain taking?

Just compensation, generally the fair market value of what is taken. On a partial taking, it also accounts for damage to the value of the remainder you keep, offset by any special benefits from the project.

How does a taking affect my title?

The acquiring authority records a certificate of take, deed, or easement, and the new right of way and easements run with the land and appear in the title search. A buyer needs to know exactly where the public right of way and easements sit.

Can a road taking create a title problem?

It can. A taking can change access or leave a boundary that needs cleaning up afterward, sometimes calling for a quiet title action to settle the new lines. We check what the taking did to access and the recorded description.