The Administrative Unit of the Right of Way Branch is supervised by the State Administrative Agent. The entire staff of this Unit is located in the Raleigh Central Office. This unit is composed of agents and clerical staff responsible for processing all payments to property owners for the rights of way acquired by the Right of Way Branch. Part of this responsibility involves the maintenance of records of all right of way transactions, conveyances, and costs to support requests for reimbursement of expended funds from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

All payroll and many personnel functions of the Right of Way Branch are handled by the staff of the Administrative Unit. Requests from field staff, land developers, surveyors, and from the general public for information concerning existing rights of way are the responsibility of the Administrative Unit. Also, this Unit is responsible for requests from other Branches of the Department of Transportation for estimates of right of way costs.

Negotiations Unit

The Negotiations Unit is administered by the State Right of Way Negotiator who is located in the Raleigh Central Right of Way Office. In addition to the Raleigh staff, the Negotiations Unit has a field office in each of the 14 highway divisions across the State. Each division right of way office is administered by a Division Right of Way Agent and Assistant Division Right of Way Agent supported by a staff of several Right of Way Agents as well as clerical staff.

The Negotiations Unit is responsible for contacting and negotiating with each property owner affected by proposed roadway projects to purchase the necessary rights of way for the project. Additionally, the Negotiations Unit is responsible for the purchase of private properties for use as materials sites, storage areas, or environmental mitigation areas when required. To effect the purchase of private properties, the Agents of the Negotiations Unit must research property records in the County Registry, request appraisals of the property, request condemnations, and prepare legal documents such as fee simple deeds and deeds of release, as well as negotiating on a personal level with individual property owners.

The sale or disposition of real property is also handled by the agents of the Negotiations Unit. This includes the sale of buildings and land remnants acquired in conjunction with projects but which are no longer necessary for highway use. Also included are the sales of any buildings on properties acquired which must be cleared or removed from the right of way prior to or during construction.

Appraisal Unit

The Appraisal Unit is administered by the State Right of Way Appraiser who is located in the Raleigh Central Right of Way Office. In addition to the Raleigh staff, the Appraisal Unit has 5 field offices across the State. These area appraisal offices are located in Greenville, Raleigh, Winston-Salem, Charlotte and Asheville. Each area appraisal office is administered by an Area Appraiser who is supported by review and staff appraisers.

The Appraisal Unit is responsible for providing appraisals which meet acceptable appraisal standards and which reflect fair market value to be used in the purchase or acquisition of real property by the Negotiations Unit. This involves research of property transactions in the County Registries, tax records and Multiple Listing Services, as well as, analysis of the sales to arrive at a fair "before" and "after" value of the properties to be acquired for right of way use. On those properties acquired through condemnation, staff appraisers may be required to testify in the court case which determines the compensation to be paid to the property owner. Estimates of the cost of right of way on proposed projects are also provided by the Appraisal Unit for use in highway planning and project design.