I’m new to this forum and new to the world of mineral rights in general. I recently found out that my mom’s side of the family owns mineral rights in New Mexico and Texas, but I’ve been given almost no direction or paperwork, just this website as a starting point.
I’m planning to visit my grandfather next month to hopefully get more details, but in the meantime I’d love to begin educating myself and making some kind of progress. I’m not expecting to figure everything out overnight, but even 1% in the right direction would feel like a win.
If anyone has advice on where a beginner should start: whether it’s terminology I need to learn, questions I should be prepared to ask, or specific threads or resources to look at, I’d be extremely grateful.
A good place to start is with the Mineral Help tab above.
Get familiar with the state websites for New Mexico and Texas.
Tak with your grandfather about how he organizes his files.
Get copies of check stubs, leases, deeds, statements from operators,etc.
Matt Sands is the President of NARO, the National Association of Royalty Owners. He teaches some classes on YouTube.
You can join NARO for $75 for an introductory year. They hold conventions (TX Chapter is this week in Austin), give classes, have a library of webinars. There is a great one by the TX Presdident on how to find data in Texas.
You may find it helpful to orient your thinking and your minerals by state, county, block, abstract and section for TX. (Township, Range and Section for NM). Wells are drilled where the reservoirs can be commercially produced which is grounded in the locations and the geology. You may have minerals rights which are in production and some which are not, but don’t be in a rush to sell until you understand your rights, the activity now and potentially in the future.
Montior the Counties on the forum where your minerals are. Set up alerts to get theh topics that are covered in those areas. Ask tons of questions!
Welcome to the forum:
This site has a great community that provides useful information. Don’t be afraid to post newby questions here. You may also consider joining NARO (National Association of Royalty Owners)
NARO Home
This post is not legal, tax or investment advice. Reading or responding to this post does not create an attorney/client relationship.
I would encourage you to consider, too, listening to Matt Sands’ (Chair of NARO) podcast: The Mineral Rights Forum. There is a vast amount of information available in these podcasts. Moreover, if a subject/issue arises in your mineral rights ownership, it is likely something that has been covered in one of the episodes. Simply google the subject and The Mineral Rights Podcast, and you should get direction. You can listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or the website for the podcast. Sadly, I cannot post the link in this reply (probably to prevent weird stuff being posted in messages).
Other posts have stated good starting points, too.
You are welcome! I would encourage you to consider listening to the first season episodes, as those episodes cover many of the basics associated with owning mineral rights.
Welcome! You will find a lot of the “older” hands will be willing to lend a hand where available, sometimes it migt cost some but at least you can gather info and compare what some are telling you.
You say that your Mom’s side of the family has mineral rights, but not specifically that your Mom owns mineral rights. Are you asking for your Mom or your Mom’s Estate? You say you are going to talk to your Grandfather about them, but if he still owns them, they are his to do with as he pleases.
If they have not passed down to your Mom or you, then you might be a little premature with the what if’s.
It’s a tough topic, but there are ways for your grandfather to set up his estate plan to avoid probate such as a trust. Visit with an estate planning attorney in his area. You may need involvement of NM and TX attorneys as well to insure proper trust funding.
This post is not legal, tax or investment advice. Reading or responding to this post does not create an attorney/client relationship.