Buying land without mineral rights

[Walkermj]

Hello, We are looking at buying land in Navarro County, Texas. I know that it was the oil boom County back in the day. The seller does not want to give up mineral rights. If we did buy there would have to be a clause that protected surface rights. I am concerned that not having mineral rights will devalue the land. We are already offering below their asking price quite a bit because of the condition of the house and property. Does not having the mineral rights devalue it more? Could we offer even less? While it appears they should be motivated to sell they are portraying that they aren’t. Will we be able to sell in the future without mineral rights? Is there anything we can do to persuade them to give up the mineral rights? How do we even find out if they truly have them in the first place?

Thank you for any insights!

[M_Barnes]

Welcome to the forum.

Sellers of surface land often do want to keep the mineral rights. They would have to have the proper wording in the sales deed to sever the minerals and retain them. Mineral rights are generally dominant over surface rights, but there are some cases in Texas that are trying to change that for solar farms. The sales price is negotiable and can reflect not including the minerals. Yes, you can sell the land later without the minerals. A title search through the county courthouse would record earlier sales and see if a severance was already listed.

[zconlin]

There’s pretty much zero oil and gas activity happening in Navarro County. If you actually like the land… It’s a non-factor.