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i have been following and learning so much from these discussions the past two weeks since i joined the group. my land situation is very similar to what others have recently shared and learned about. There have recently been several letters of interest with the best low-ball offer of $250.acre lease bonus for 3yrs. w/2yr.option, and 20% royalty. on land i own in Toyah, Tx.: 84.5 acres in a 304.5 acre property in Section 6, block C-8; reportedly in the Bone Spring Shale Formation. would like to determine how much is being obtained by others in proximity to my land. How do i locate info in the “general land office”. “univ. land office”, GSI, Texas RR Com., etc. that i hear about but cant seem to figure out. i do not even know how to engage in the discussions herein. so far ive tried 3-4 times to send comment, but no response. dont know what i am doing wrong. so here goes again. thanks for any input. mike b.
Hi Mike, sorry I don’t know very much about the Toyah area, so hopefully someone else will be able to weigh in. You can access the RR tools at http://www.rrc.state.tx.us/data/online/index.php#. I looked quickly at your section in the GIS viewer, I don’t know which survey it is, but highlighted it on the map attached.C8_6.png So about a mile away Chesapeake has a newly permitted well. But a mile can be a long way in the oil & gas business. You should ask the landmen who are contacting you about the kind of drilling companies want to do, is it a horizontal drill or vertical drill, and what depth are they looking at (to know if they are going after Bone Spring etc) or are they wildcatting for oil and/or gas. As for knowing what others are getting paid, either have to contact others on this forum and your neighbors if you live in the area. I went through the GLO site http://www.glo.texas.gov/what-we-do/energy-and-minerals/oil_gas/sea… to look for block/sections in a similar area to ours. Notice for Bids documents are listed by County and show Block and Section, and then you have to look at the Tabulation of Bids to see the high/low bids for that lot. Given that the GLO office has a lot more sway/leverage/acreage, I aimed in my negotiations to get the ‘low’ bid that was shown for similar nearby sections, but of course that’s up to your negotiating skills 
Hope this helps…
John – I have my own map… need Survey name, Block, Township and Section… and you provided all. Sorry I don’t have access to your Abstract Number. Title company in Pecos, Western Abstract & Title Co., (432) 445-2463 Later – Buzz
John- Have you tried checking the Reeves Co. Appraisal District to get the abstract no? I think you can search by owner name. Abstract no. will have an A before it… usually 3 or 4 digits.
I’m seeing lease bonus rates anywhere from $800 an acre to $1500-$2000 depending on your area. Normally bonus rates are higher than any potential sales price.
Thank you, Callie TX.! Your info is very much appreciated. I’m sure it will be extremely helpful. Now, i have my work cut-out for me to go to the sites you recommend. I too, am interested in just obtaining a fair offer - not wanting to be greedy - but know it behooves me to be much better informed. i have accepted a few lease bonus deals in the past 25 yrs. but always just took the first offer that came along - mainly because i feel ingnorant about this whole business. later i would find out i could have gotten a much better deal - the last deal has been a good 10-15 yrs. ago. That lease left a well that found NG (hi-content) but was full of lots of water. so it was never exploited and remains capped. These latest inquiries by landmen have indicated they would do lateral drilling to a depth of 9-11K feet. There is another well which contains lots of fresh water - uncontaminated like the other one with NG in it. I drilling outfit said all it needs is the casing to produce lots of fresh water. So i will do some more research with your info. Thanks again, and any ideas, input is welcome. mike
Thanks for the info, Buzz!
Lori> Thank you. I’ll see what I can dig up.
Y’all are very helpful!
I would suggest getting an attorney to help you. We are working on a lease now with an attorney out of Midland and he can get you a contract more favorable to you. We are getting 1/4 royalty for three years. We do not want an option. An attorney will probably cost $500 to $1000 but that can be well worth it. I’ll tell you what money we got after the deal is done.
Ah!
Thanks, Craig.
I’m a little dense sometimes. 
I live in Dallas.
I have part of an undivided interest in a piece of land I have never seen. It’s described as being: “under all of Section 10 in Block 55, Township 5. T & P RR CO Survey” [no abstract number furnished].
Without an abstract # I can only assume the actual location. I’m trying to get that pinned down. Suggestions?
As far as I know right now there is no active production on the land.
What can I use as a ballpark figure for lease rates? How would these compare to outright sale prices?
Also does anyone have any experience with a local title company?
Thanks!
John – your land is ~14 miles NW of Pecos. I’m surprised someone hasn’t tried to lease your property. You need to get some good advice… and walk softly stranger, you might really have something here. Hope this helps. Later – Buzz
Thank you, Buzz. I always listen to good advice.
How did you determine the location?
I’m struggling with trying to amend the Paid Up lease contract (Producers 88) that we received… Basically, I’m striking the title clause, adding a depth clause and want to add a Pugh clause. Does anyone have a Pugh clause that they were able to insert into the Producers 88?
John - Look through the information in the “Mineral Help” tab at the top of the page. It was helpful to me to get started.
Please see my below posts for history.
Lori> I have tried looking at Reeves Co. Appraisal District and all I get is a “for pay” commercial site.
I would prefer to have free access to public records.
It there an avenue of approach that I am missing?
Thanks!
Wow.
Looking at the posts previous to me it seems that this lease business gets more & more involved.
I guess that shouldn’t be a surprise.
Is there a tutorial for us newbies who know next to nothing?
John Doss - you indicated you are part owner of the land… tax-wise what name is on the tax roll… there are several ‘Doss’ owners in Reeves… but none of them ‘John’. Did you locate the Abstract No., i.e., A-???. Is $265/ac the lease price… price for minerals only… price for surface & minerals… is that the total price or price for your share? Pardon me, but it’s like asking ‘how long is a string’? Later – Buzz
Hi Mike - that’s really neat you found that well named after your mom! So with your abstract number, it says J Preusser is the alternate name…
Think we’re at the limit of my knowledge of the RRC system, so I’m afraid I don’t know what do with the Abstract of Title number (89659) - perhaps Buzz Van Meter or others on the forum might be able to help?
Callie TX - yes, you made those numbers work. j.preusser was my great grandfather. i will use the A-2395 abstract number to access those maps and data resources myself with more confidence, but not the other 5 digit one. thanks again
Thank you Buzz and Lori.
I am a friend of John’s and he is not well at the moment.
He has asked me to relay the following in the hopes that you can provide a bit more information:
How would one determine whether the land is mineral classified (Relinquishment Act) or not?
John seems to think that is is not but isn’t sure.
I have looked over his & your posts here and I have gotten the following information from John: His portion is an undivided portion, but seems to be about 28 acres. He has been offered $265 each for a total of $7420 by someone who owns a major portion of the land. Assuming the land is not mineral classified is this a fair value?
If it was, I assume the value would be less?
Thank you for your time and assistance in this matter.
John- If you haven’t already found it, here’s the link to the Reeves County Appraisal District site. Click on “search our data” and you can go from there.
Lori