LKS TASACIONES S.A., conducts expropriation valuations and appraisals in both the domestic and the public sectors. As the very name indicates, in this kind of valuation, it is a matter of estimating the price that must be paid in the expropriation imposed on the condemnee, for the loss of property and rights affected by the same, a price that must be FAIR. It is a matter of conducting valuations that either refer to procedures under town planning legislation, or that refer to procedures under expropriation legislation.

In any event, to establish said valuations (be it of property or rights), it must start on the basis of the determination of the valuation date, the possible repercussions of expectations and the valuation or otherwise of plus values and betterments. This type of valuation is often similar to a contradictory valuation, which must therefore indicate the valuation rule justifying the method and obtention of the stated value, in accordance with the purpose of the contradictory valuation (Law 6/1998 of 13th April, Royal Decree 1020/1993 of 25th June, etc.).

The Law of 16th December 1954, on forced expropriation, states all the requirements for a forced expropriation. Once this has taken place, section 9 onwards establishes the procedure for the acquisition of property declared to be of Public Utility, with the requirement of setting a fair price for the same.

Setting the indemnity (FAIR PRICE) constitutes the central problem of the Expropriation Law and, consequently, of expropriation valuations. The “traditional” criterion of submitting the differences in price – duly established by an expert – for a decision by a third party expert must be recognised as being a last resort, which may only be used once other procedures stipulated for reaching a mutual agreement have not yielded any results.

Section 29 states the following:

In each of the files thus constituted, the administration shall require that titleholders, within a period of twenty days from that following the day of notification, submit a valuation breakdown, which shall stipulate the estimated value of the expropriated property, and which may enter any and all allegations as may be deemed relevant.