Hello! I hope someone can help me, it would be greatly appreciated. I received a letter, just like many, for a request to lease oil/gas rights from me on this piece of land. I apparently inherited it from someone that I never heard of and don’t know of any family in Texas. Anyway, I know that will be verified, I just need to know what this land might be worth for the lease. I was offered 1000.00 an acre, for 6.66 (lol) acres for 5 years, total 6666.66, and the usual 25% royalty. From what I’ve read here that sounds low. (The 1000.00). I need to call this fellow back and yes, I’ve verified him and the company he represents and all seems legit. I’m nervous about speaking to him though until I know a little more, but also need to know how and when to indicate I want to negotiate the price. I’m a newbie at this and in Washington state, where most of us don’t know diddly about oil/gas stuff. I need to do this on my own, as I cannot hire a lawyer and cannot travel to Texas. Thank you in advance!
Can anyone help on this please?
Do you know the abstract #?
Yes, 3503. Thank you so much for responding!
$1,000.00 bonus is not the worst offer you could get in this area, you are pretty far south of the best producing wells in the county. You could get more depending on your negotiating skills, probably up to 2k per acre bonus. Do not settle for less than a 1/4 royalty, and if you find out the company leasing you is involved with the operator, ask for even more.
I have mineral rights in Block 13, section 239 and recently leased for 10,000 per net mineral acre. I know rates vary depending on where your minerals are, but 1,000 is very low. Also, I wouldn’t sign a 5 year deal. I believe 3 years is more the norm. I am not an attorney and certainly not an expert about all this, but wanted to share my two cents. Good luck!
Those sections are not near each other.
Actually the land man is an independent, working for Title and Abstract Resources, Inc. Does that make a big difference?
Interesting, I am not sure what his intentions are. I checked and there are no wells or applications for wells where you own. You can see that information here… https://gis.rrc.texas.gov/GISViewer/ put reeves as the county and your abstract # in the identify column. There are two permits to drill across the street, but depending on the direction the wells take you might not be getting any royalty from them.
Hm, how interesting. I will check that info and thank you so much for the link and for your help. 
I’ve seen others recommend 3 years as well. Thank you so much for your input!
It sounds like from my research the operator is involved with the company, which is Apache. What is my next move? Just call him and tell him I’m interested and want to review a lease?
With a bonus in that price range, and you not knowing that you may have inherited the interest, it is very possible that they are trying to lease the acreage as a “protection lease”. A protection lease is obtained when the title opinion suggests that the minerals may have gone to someone other than who the original chain of title suggested due to the interpretation of a deed or will, or state laws and statutes. The company offers a lower bonus due to the risk that the lessor of the protection lease may not own the interest, and the fact that multiple leases are purchased to cover the same interest. Once the title issue is resolved the prevailing party is paid the royalties. This may not be your situation, but I thought this information may be useful to you in case it is. Title in the are you referenced tends to be very complex, and therefore protection leases are common. That being said you can always try to negotiate higher, but if it is a protection lease the company may decide that the lease bonus outweighs the risk.
I’ve heard and seen on this forum that Apache leases as cheaply as possible. With that said, you should be able to negotiate a deal higher than the initial lease bonus offer.
Thank you! I will do my best.
I am no way saying ALL are out to get you, lawyer or landsmen or women! Just to say that loudly before I get ugly comments 
Please, please get multiple offers on what you have before signing anything there are so so many that are honest landsmen or women, but those are quadrupled by those fast talking know all the big legal words and the lawyers whom will fall right in suit trying to make that all mighty oil dollar. Unfortunately my husband found out the hard way when completely selling what he had inherited from a grandmother the man assured him no way would he find a deal even close to what was offered, which to some regular small town kids growing up far from wealthy, it sounded like a HUGE amount of money so he took the offer and the legal word throwing man. Sadly less than 9 months later his sister sold hers as well, exact same amount but she learned from brothers mistakes and did lots of research and make lots of calls and ended up with just almost double for hers:woman_facepalming:t2:
Be careful!
In addendum to my last post…I see you stated the real owner in the end would get the royalties. It sounds like whatever bonus I collect though even if I’m not the owner, would be mine to keep. A small commitment they make to try and get on that land …I’m starting to understand. 
This makes more sense than you might think in this case. The wording is “indications” that you (as an heir to so and so, etc…), so they might not know for sure. That was going to be one of my first questions …how on earth did they trace it to me? Thank you SO much for the info. This could come in quite handy. Do they actually pay out to several people if they just don’t know just to cover their butts? What if they find out who the real owner is? I don’t expect you to answer all of this, my mind is just wandering. But this may be the case.
The key is to make sure that you do not have a warranty in the lease. This insures that you get to keep the bonus money. You still want to make sure you get the best deal you can on the lease, as you may end up being the actual owner. You would be surprised how many times a deed is misworded or a will is not properly probated and the ownership ends up being different than what was originally assumed. Most likely they will work with you and give you the standard provisions that are frequent in the area if it is a Protection Lease, but you will likely have to request them. In addition to the bonus, their big push back will be if the terms you want in the lease are more stringent than what the other lease for the interest currently has. This is because if they are actively engaged in operations they don’t want to have their operations driven by a lease that may not cover anything, and the bonus for the reason that I mentioned in my last post. Its not a bad idea to get an attorney to help you on the lease negotiations. I would recommend that you get an attorney who has experience practicing oil & gas in Texas. However remember that just like everyone else in the world they work to get paid, and the final decisions on the lease are up to you. If this is a Protection Lease, which I would inquire with the Landman to confirm before making any assumptions, then they will be more willing to walk away than if they have confirmed the title ownership. That is just one thing you will want to remember when negotiating the terms and bonus.