Iowa Code » Chapter 6B — PROCEDURE UNDER EMINENT DOMAIN
Iowa Code

Iowa Code § 6B.14 (2026)

Appraisement — report

✓ current as of July 2026
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1. The commissioners shall, at the time fixed in the notices required under section 6B.8, view the land sought to be condemned and assess the damages which the owner will sustain by reason of the appropriation. The commission shall file its written report, signed by all commissioners, with the sheriff. At the request of the condemner or the condemnee, the commission shall divide the damages into parts to indicate the value of any dwelling, the value of the land and improvements other than a dwelling, and the value of any additional damages. The appraisement and return may be in parcels larger than forty acres belonging to one person and lying in one tract, unless the agent or attorney of the applicant, or the commissioners, have actual knowledge that the tract does not belong wholly to the person in whose name it appears of record; and in case of such knowledge, the appraisement shall be made of the different portions as they are known to be owned.

2. Prior to the meeting of the commission, the commission or a commissioner shall not communicate with the applicant, property owner, or tenant, or their agents, regarding the condemnation proceedings. The commissioners shall meet in open session to view the property and to receive evidence, but may deliberate in closed session. When deliberating in closed session, the meeting is closed to all persons who are not commissioners except for personnel from the sheriff’s office if such personnel are requested by the commission. After deliberations commence, the commission and each commissioner are prohibited from communicating with any party to the proceeding. However, if the commission is deliberating in closed session, and after deliberations commence the commission requires further information from a party or a witness, the commission shall notify the property owner and the acquiring agency that they are allowed to attend the meeting at which such additional information shall be provided but only for that period of time during which the additional information is being provided. The property owner and the acquiring agency shall be given a reasonable opportunity to attend the meeting. The commission shall keep minutes of all its meetings showing the date, time, and place, the members present, and the action taken at each meeting. The minutes shall show the results of each vote taken and information sufficient to indicate the vote of each member present. The vote of each member present \n Tue Dec 09 22:34:40 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 6B (41, 0) §6B.14, PROCEDURE UNDER EMINENT DOMAIN 10\n\nshall be made public at the open session. The minutes shall be public records open to public inspection.

3. In determining fair market value of property, the commissioners shall not consider only the assessed value assigned to such property for purposes of property taxation.

4. In assessing the damages the owner or tenant will sustain, the commissioners shall consider and make allowance for personal property which is damaged or destroyed or reduced in value.

5. An owner or tenant occupying land which is proposed to be acquired by condemnation shall be awarded a sum sufficient to remove such owner’s or tenant’s personal property from the land to be acquired, which sum shall represent reasonable costs of moving the personal property from the land to be acquired to a point no greater than fifty miles; but in any event, damages awarded under this section for moving shall not exceed five thousand dollars for each owner or tenant occupying land proposed to be condemned. An owner or tenant may apply for an award pursuant to this section only if all other damages provided by law have been awarded and such amount awarded is insufficient to pay the owner’s or tenant’s reasonable costs of moving. [C73, §1249; C97, §2004, 2029; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §7835; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §472.14] C93, §6B.14 99 Acts, ch 171, §12, 42; 2000 Acts, ch 1179, §16, 17, 30; 2006 Acts, 1st Ex, ch 1001, §13, 14, 49; 2007 Acts, ch 22, §1; 2009 Acts, ch 133, §1; 2012 Acts, ch 1023, §1 Referred to in §6B.3, 316.2 \n

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 4 cases, 2014–2017 · leading case: Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. the Iowa Dep't of Transp., 891 N.W.2d 220 (Iowa 2017).
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Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. the Iowa Dep't of Transp., 891 N.W.2d 220 (Iowa 2017). “§ 6B.14(1). The compensation commission calculates the measure of damages by first determining the fair market value of the property before the taking.”
City of North Liberty, Iowa v. Gary Weinman (Iowa Ct. App. 2017). · cites it 2× “See Iowa Code § 6B.14. The city appealed to the district court, claiming the damages were excessive.”
James R. Deshaw & Ruth A. Deshaw v. Jones Cnty., Iowa (Iowa Ct. App. 2014). · cites it 2× “See Iowa Code § 6B.14(1). After the compensation commission has assessed the damages to the condemnee, either the condemnee or the condemnor may appeal the appraisement of damages to the district court.”
Amended May 12, 2017 Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. The Iowa Dep't of Transp. (Iowa 2017). “1 1The Code does not state whether the compensation commission should still meet if an owner of property files an action under section 6A.24(1). However, because 7 When the commission meets, its sole task is to assess any damages the landowner will suffer due to the acquisition.”
Iowa Code § 6B.14(1): 3 cases
Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. the Iowa Dep't of Transp., 891 N.W.2d 220 (Iowa 2017). “§ 6B.14(1). The compensation commission calculates the measure of damages by first determining the fair market value of the property before the taking.”
James R. Deshaw & Ruth A. Deshaw v. Jones Cnty., Iowa (Iowa Ct. App. 2014). “See Iowa Code § 6B.14(1). After the compensation commission has assessed the damages to the condemnee, either the condemnee or the condemnor may appeal the appraisement of damages to the district court.”
Amended May 12, 2017 Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. The Iowa Dep't of Transp. (Iowa 2017). “1 1The Code does not state whether the compensation commission should still meet if an owner of property files an action under section 6A.24(1). However, because 7 When the commission meets, its sole task is to assess any damages the landowner will suffer due to the acquisition.”
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