It's important to note that the valuation assigned by government appraisers is often well below what the property would be worth on the open market. When I was

It's important to note that the valuation assigned by government appraisers is often well below what the property would be worth on the open market. When I was young, my grandparents were caught up in an eminent domain suit. They were to be paid about two thirds the worth of their home (the worth of their home, in this case, being based on mortgage appraisals[1]). If they had run a business, they would have also had to factor in relocation costs, downtime, etc. Insofar as the seizing body is an interested party, or operates via political pressure from an interested party, the "fair market value" is prone to work in the buyer's favor. [1] - obvious disclaimers - This is anecdotal evidence, and it happened in the 90s. Perhaps there was a tendency amongst lending institutions to inflate their appraisals so as to justify offering loans with higher profit margins. But I still think my point holds.