Finding records pertaining to your mineral rights is very important to ensure they are marketable. As with any asset you want to know how much you own and where it is located.
If you inherited mineral rights, there are several scenarios that may come into play. If you received a mineral interest from your parents, you may have the pertinent information listed in estate documents like wills, trusts or other legal documents. However, many people inherit their mineral interest from distant relatives, through intestate succession. If you fall into this category of inheriting mineral rights from a distant relative, there are a few steps listed below to help locate documents that may be tied to your subject interest.
1. Start off by checking the County Courthouse where the distant relative passed away. Every County will have a record room which may contain valuable information such as, Leases, Deeds, Estates and other documents to help show the decedents the mineral interest.
2. In some state’s taxes must be paid on mineral interest, particularly in West Virginia. Once again checking with the correct County Courthouse Assessment office to confirm if there are any taxes that need paid for the distant relative. These tax assessments can provide extremely important data in figuring out what you may own.
3. Lastly, if you have received a lease offer from an operator, it usually will contain information such as, State, County, District, Parcel Number, and potentially the net mineral acres you may own in the tract. This information is essential for a starting point to figure out where the mineral interest is coming from.