I have been approached to lease my minerals in Caddo Co section 20 -8N - 9W does anyone have info on what leases are going for in this area and the depth I should allow before a reneogation I am live out of State and would appreciate any feed back I want to be prepared before our official talk…
Dear Ms. McCoy,
You have come to the right place. There is a Caddo County, OK group located here.
Sometimes things move in mysterious ways in our business. Oklahoma is a state that has forced pooling. That can work to your detriment or your favor. Some negotiation sessions last months. I have seen them go on for over a year, but most are much shorter than that.
There are several rules of thumb that I try to live by. Get everything in writing. Even if you discuss something on the phone, make notes - and tell them that you are making notes - and e-mail them a copy of your notes. A big thing for me is a paper trail.
In Oklahoma, they are big on giving you two or three choices and have you pick one to fit your needs. To me, that is not conducive to good negotiation.
I called a friend in Caddo County and in your general area leases have gone through $700 per acre. A lot depends on your acreage position and the companies plans.
There are just so many variables, but I do not think that I have ever taken the first offer. Typically, I try to set the price after their first offer.
I am afraid that I do not think that a primer has been written on this site on how to negotiate oil and gas leases. I have found some online, but have found them useless. They list clauses that you want to negotiate in or out of the lease, but no language to go with it. Don't count on the oil company writing an airtight lease form for your benefit. They will write one for their benefit, though.
There are MANY stories on this website about how people got taken when they leased. They were not educated on the smallest of basics of a lease negotiation and did not get representation. So, in my way of thinking (and many on this board vociferously disagree), since they did not properly manage or steward their assets, it is their own fault. And we all have faults about many things.
Education and information is your ally.
Debra,
Geologically speaking, Bad places in Caddo county are hard to find. Lease bonus is the most easily understood concept but royalty protection, in places like Caddo County, is vastly more important to you in the long run. If you have more that just a few acres, consider using Mr. Cotten and his leasing concepts in drafting a counter proposal. You and yours will sleep much better at night.
Thanks for your information