I received a FedEx today from Antero Resources. It’s a contract stating that I appear to own an interest in oil and gas lease in Tyler, West Virginia. I have never been there in my life. The letter is a court document that is written in English but not understandable at all.
Then after the State document, is another page that makes no sense to me. Then the last page is a W9!! There is also a trip fold brochure from Antero and a business card from Jacob Jabbour.
Does anyone have any idea why I am getting these documents requesting I sign all, notarize and return?
Is this a scam? Or is it legit? Do I have to sign any of it and why would I?
Brenda,
My siblings and I experienced the same thing a few years ago. Turns out we were owners of mineral rights through our Great Grandmother on our fathers side of the family. The suggestion of obtaining a lawyer is wise as this industry has a life of its own. Without knowledge and understanding of what you are reading you have no idea what is involved. Turns out along with my brother and sister, there were about 4 other distant relatives involved in same. My advice is to involve yourself in this forum. WV Oil Owner and Nancy, both regulars on this forum, were very instrumental in helping me. Ultimately we, as a group all, obtained an attorney in oil and gas who lives in West Virginia and helped all of us obtain a knowledgeable-well worded-protected lease. I would not sign anything until you do some research.
Hi thank you so much very helpful. Did you keep the land and lease it or did you get rid of it? How is it that we don’t find out we own land until an oil company wants to lease it? This doesn’t make much sense. I have hired a title company to research the land and give me info before I move forward with a lawyer. I want to know who gave it to me, who has been paying the taxes on it all this time and why I never knew about it? It also doesn’t even tell me how much of the land I own or its value, just mentions 79 acres and 19 acres. Were your documents as confusing as mine? Just worry about it being a scam but I haven’t been asked for any money.
If you own a good percentage of the mineral interest, an attorney would be a good choice. Without seeing the documents you received one could not provide too much info on what you received. In recent times I have noticed Antero trying to purchase small mineral interests instead of trying to lease them. By you receiving a W9 that makes me think that could be the case. Usually the company only sends a W9 when they are sending out division orders. Division orders are sent after a well has been completed and royalties are to be paid. If you can put up a screenshot of the document so it can be read, there are folks on here that can determine what you have. That’s the free advice way. You can also privately send it to those mentioned if they wish to look at it. I’m sure there will be help coming as this post is read. There are some good folks on here with a wealth info and personal experience on these matters.
The cover page of the letter is what Antero considers the Order of Payment page for these cold mail offer leases (my term).
Under Net acres is your personal amount of acres owned. This number multiplied by the bonus amount per acre is their initial offer. And is usually a low offer.
Golden, you would possibly not be informed unless an oil company wants to lease the mineral property or buy it. Also, there are investment companies who send letters out all the time wanting to buy the minerals. Someone in your family is paying the taxes which may be only a few dollars. It may be a distant cousin who owns a portion just like you. They probably have the tax ticket sent to them and they pay it. Our family has one tax ticket for each tract we own a portion of. There are over 25 owners to those tracts. As of now, since we have wells on those tracts, I have to contact the heirs to have them help with taxes. Back before the oil/gas rush, hardly anyone talked about mineral rights. The taxes were low and not too many had them separated and put in each owner’s name. If Grandpa and Grandma died and they owned the rights, their kids would get them and their kids when the parents died. The system is like a family tree. The issue is that the mineral rights tax ticket was still in the Grandparents’ name. If you have a share you are probably just one of many who own a portion of the mineral property. Nowadays the oil companies are doing it somewhat different than say 5 years ago. Back then they would drive many miles to get a signature on a lease. Now they are being a lot more “choosy” on what they want and where they want to be.
Thank you so much for the information. The cover letter didn’t mention money just me being a lessee and etc. I will be home soon and send a photo of my docs. I can’t thank you all enough for your help!
I still want to know how I came about receiving it and why I wasn’t aware of it sooner?
Brenda, you and thousands of others in the last 5 years have just realized they own minerals. The main reason no one informed folks is that no one wanted to lease or buy that much back before then. Now that they have been drilling horizontal wells and the money is flowing, they are searching owners out. They will send researchers to the courthouses looking for heirs and come calling once they find them. They should be able to tell you who the descendant is that is attached to your mineral interest. They had to have a name before they found you.
Hi there,
I posted the letter I received. There are more documents but they are taking forever to download. Can anyone recommend a lawyer in the Tyler, West Virginia area? Antero had an attorney mail everything but the advice I am finding is I should have another attorney. I’m more excited about meeting distant relatives if that is what this is about!
Thank you again!
Brenda
Brenda, this is a modification of 2 existing leases. Antero is asking for permission to drill. The other document is where and who signed the existing lease. Do you recognize the names? It also describes the property and location. Do any of your family receive royalty from the company listed on the document? Usually, for the old lease to be in effect, there should be some activity such as an old well. The document tells where in the Tyler County courthouse the leases are filed. Do you know the people listed in the document as the lessee on these 2 tracts? If you don’t recognize either party, Antero could have the wrong Gordon. They have been known to sign people with the same name but with no connection. Just saying. There is not an urgent timeline and you first need to know if these people are your relatives. If you are an heir like Antero says, one would think you or your parents would have knowledge of this property or those names listed in the document.
Hi there,
My parents are deceased. I have never met my great-grandparents and I don’t know maiden names of the females. I am basically estranged from family members my entire life. We did have a Pratt in our family related by marriage but was under the impression they were in the Appalachians of NC. I don’t know that person’s first name. It’s really confusing. I received an email last night from Antero. I will send it. He is saying there is ONE well. He is saying he sent documents to my siblings. My siblings are also deceased.
Tyler County has their records online. You can start searching to see if there is a connection to your family. There is not too much you would be able to do other than finding out who and how. Antero is asking permission to drill and there are already leases in place. It would be nice to connect the names. In a real scenario, those people who signed the leases should be relatives of your grandparents and your parents. You can do a lot on your own by looking this up on the Tyler County site. You have names, book pages, and dates. You can find out a lot by looking into the names listed.
Oh, by the land agent saying there is one well. That well, if it is producing as much as a whisper of gas, will keep the old lease in effect. That is why Antero is asking everyone’s permission to drill horizontals, thus the modification of the lease. By the way, the area where this is is a good area for production. May ask the agent what percentage of the two units you own. That would give you an idea how many people are heirs and how big a share you have. The bigger share, the better.
Beforehand, I have no knowledge of help, but if this fits maybe someone will actually contact me here, or else the prob is I am lost on this site. I got an Antero contract a year ago, opened and the date was already past, email… land dude says no more wanty, we contact you if change mind! Tried to sell rights, Divot minerals says I have no mineral rights. Now I am trying for more info and offer from Antero again…If you actually own and have proof, time is on your side. If I woulda took the 18,000 from Antero fine, then thought Divot 69,000, better? and avoid all this royalty and mind jargon. Then title search, says no, and don’t know what the truth is. So sorry for just a complainer but if this gets SOMEONE… to even acknowledge my existence I’ll be happy, and hope a similar story helps you. Until we meet on the cruise ship to Cabo, excuse me my can opener is blitzing again.
