I got a letter yesterday from TotalEnergies for my 1/3 stake in a single family home that has mineral rights. They want me to sign to accept a hundred bucks. I think that they’re ripping me off. What can I do? THANKS
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Agree…a hundred bucks doesn’t move the needle…you can have way more fun waiting it out just to see…you never know…
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Welcome to the forum. Be cautious as you do not want to accidentally tangle your surface with the mineral offer. Ask them how many net mineral acres they are carrying for the offer. Is this a rural area or an in-town lot?
Most offers come because the buyer thinks they know something about pending activity. You need to find out what that something is. If you share your section, township and range or Block name, abstract name and number and section in TX, we can help with activity.
Did the other 2/3 members get the same notice. Helpful if you share information and work together.
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That’s what I’ve been doing but I have no idea what my share is worth and how I can get paid. If they want to buy it it must be worth something but certainly a lot more than $100.00. I have no idea how to proceed.
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Thanks for the reply…
It’s in Grand Prairie, Tx. between Dallas and Fort Worth. Lots of gas fracking going on there so I’m assuming that they found gas under the property which is just a single family home in a neighborhood. I’m now in Florida or I’d talk to the neighbors.
I no longer communicate with the other 2/3 mineral holders.
Are you getting paid on royalties already?
No… I’m very confused. If I take no action will they be forced to send me money for my share without me taking any action?
THANKS
Let’s clarify, do they want to buy your minerals or lease your minerals? If they want to buy and you own the minerals directly, then you can say yes or no. If your minerals are tied in with other family members and you have to vote together then communication is needed. If they want to lease, then you have to sign a lease in order to get paid. I had assumed a sale earlier. Might be a lease which is a different direction.
Tell them to kiss off, If they are contacting you directly and not in a group with the other 2/3rds owners it is highly likely you own your share separately. Tell them you want to participate and you will pay your share of the well expense, they will also likely carry you and you wont pay anything but will receive money if it’s profitable. You have a very very small interest and you are just a fly in the ointment to them. I wouldn’t take any threat seriously that it will be expensive if you don’t lease. Most of those operators drilling in urban areas give you an option to not lease and participate anyways.
It’s an “electronic funds transfer guidelines” form. They want to send me $100.00. I think that they’re trying to rip me off.// I don’t know if agreeing will lock-in the pittance they’ve allocated for me or not. How do I dispute the amount?
They are trying to pay you for funds in “suspense”. If they don’t pay you the money “escheats” to the State.
Does the top of the form say it is a Division Order or a Transfer Order? It may be asking you for an ACH deposit because you have royalties due. If so, then you can make the minimum deposit $25. You can also ask for a real check and paper statement. Many of us would like direct deposit since it avoids accidents with the mail, but you have to be careful about the language so that they cannot reverse pull out funds from your bank account. Look up the topic thread by Richard Winblad on that! There are ways to protect yourself.
I’m not getting anything yet. This letter is to allow them to pay me electronically for the gas, oil and mineral rights. I don’t know if this is a one-time payment or an annual payment. Regardless $100.00 is a pitance.
It says “Division Order” on the form. I’m not giving them my back account info. They’re going to have to send me checks.
My main concern is that they’re lowballing me and if I cash the check they’ll consider that a defacto acceptence of their lowball terms. $100.00 is a pitance… How can I challenge their payment amount? THANKS
Now we are getting more clarity The Division Order (DO) has to be signed in Texas in order to get paid. It means a well has already been drilled. You do not have to grant them ACH privileges. Read it again. What it probably says is that the funds need to accrue to $100 before you get paid. You can change that to $25. They are not low balling you if this is a DO as they have a formula they have to follow. The DO has a decimal amount listed and a well name or property name. That decimal is computed from the net acres, the royalty amount and the percentage of the well length or acreage in the drilling spacing unit. If you are a 1/3 owner in a city lot, your acreage is very small. The royalty would have been from an old lease or perhaps from a working interest or a pooling, so you need to contact the firm’s Division order department that sent it and ask for the equation that they used. You want to know the name of the well or wells, your net mineral acres, your royalty, and the other terms used such as the allocation by feet or allocation by pooling. Likely that your amount will be very small as it sounds like it is a city lot. Ask them for a copy of the lease for your portion of the payout of the well. Small is better than nothing! They are trying to pay you for the royalties from the well, not take away your mineral rights.
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OK… Thanks so much for your insightful replies. I will contact them on Monday.
One last thing… Is the $100.00 the total or is it an annual payout?
You will be paid the royalties when they add up to the minimum amount, such as $100 or $25. They will then accrue until the next time they add up to that amount and then they pay again. I set my minimum at $25, so that I get more regular checks. The royalties will continue to pay until the well is no longer economic which could be many months to many decades depending upon what kind of well it is.
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OK…Thanks so much for your replies. I really really appreciate it.