How to Transfer Mineral Rights

The United States is one of only two countries that allow private individuals to own mineral rights. The term “mineral rights” refers to the ownership of underground resources like oil, silver, gold, copper, iron, natural gas and uranium. If you own mineral rights, you have the right to explore for, develop, and/or sell these resources without authorization from the government (you would need the relevant state permits to drill an oil or gas well).

Transferring mineral rights constitutes a real property transaction, and as such, requires a deed be recorded in the county where the property lies that outlines the types of mineral rights to be transferred and to whom. If you’re thinking about transferring your mineral rights, read on to learn more about our two methods of mineral rights transfers — outbound and inbound.

Outbound Process

We’ll initiate the transfer process for minerals we’ve already identified. Here’s a look at the process:

1. We’ll contact you via email, phone call or text message.
2. We’ll make an offer to purchase. Upon agreement of a price, you’ll get a short-form purchase to review and execute.
3. You’ll need to comply with the due diligence period, which is typically 30 days for one parcel.
4. After the completion of the due diligence period, our in-house team will run the title from homestead patent to present to ensure there are no issues that would result in a defect to your ownership of the minerals.
5. We’ll provide the mineral deed to execute the order of payment.
6. To close the deal, we’ll pay you with a wire or check based on your preference.

Inbound Process

Another manner of mineral rights transfer is for you to come directly to us. Here’s what the process looks like when you initiate it as a seller:

1. You provide us with what you believe your mineral ownership to be.
2. We’ll give you an offer to purchase based on what you’ve represented to us.
3. Once you agree to the purchase price, you’ll enter a due diligence period. The duration is usually 30 to 45 days to confirm that you own what you’ve stated.
4. If we find you own more or less than expected, we’ll modify the purchase price accordingly before we close the deal.

Do Mineral Rights Transfer With Property?

Mineral rights do not necessarily transfer with the property. A property conveyance, generally referred to as a sale, transfers the rights of the surface land, along with the minerals under it — unless and until the mineral rights have been previously sold or severed from the surface.

A deed typically represents a transfer of real property, which may convey raw land, a residential property, a commercial property, or minerals amongst other classifications. A “Mineral Deed” effectuates the conveyance of mineral rights to a new owner without the surface. A Mineral Deed can be used for the initial severance of minerals from the surface estate, and is also used thereafter to convey the now severed mineral estate.

Oftentimes, deeds conveying surface property – such as a Warranty Deed used when selling a home – will not reference a previous severance of the mineral estate. This means that when you buy a property, you may be unable to determine if you own mineral rights just from your deed. Instead, you’ll likely need to hire a lawyer or title company to research your historical chain of title to understand whether you own the mineral estate under your property.

Sell Your Minerals to Flat River Minerals

If you’re thinking about selling your mineral rights, Flat River Minerals is a company you can trust. We’re one of the few mineral and royalty acquisition companies that focus on buying directly from the mineral owner and not through a middleman or broker. This means you get the full value of your minerals in your own pocket! With local bases in Wyoming and Pennsylvania, we’re intimately familiar with the land, minerals, and communities in the Rockies and Appalachian regions, and we form genuine relationships with all our customers. When you sell to us, you can rest assured that we’ll keep your minerals local.

Our in-house technical team provides highly accurate valuations to ensure you get the best pricing for your mineral’s worth. We also have some of the fastest turnaround rates on the market and will close your deal in 30 days or less.

If you’re ready to sell your minerals, submit your request for a free valuation or contact us for more information.