Finding oil on your land is bound to be thrilling, as it could transform your financial security and allow you to enjoy a more comfortable future.
Discovering oil on your property is like striking liquid gold, but you might be confused about the next best steps to secure your rights and finances.
Before you start imagining how you will spend your oil royalties, you must learn about the best next steps to take.
After all, you will want to secure the best rate for the oil, but it might not necessarily belong to you. Here is what to do when you find oil on your land.
Understand Your Mineral Rights
If you find oil on your land, you may automatically believe you have rights to the oil. After all, you can grow and build almost anything on your private land.
However, you might be surprised to learn that in addition to your property rights, you will need mineral rights to own any oil or minerals on your land.
Residents in most countries outside the United States don’t have any legal claim to oil or minerals found on their properties, as the government claims all rights. Yet, US citizens do have mineral rights unless the government has already reserved them.
Yet, owning property rights doesn’t mean you own everything underneath it. Review your deed of ownership to identify if you own your property’s mineral rights.
If you don’t own the mineral rights, you can find out who does by performing a title search at the local records office.
Contact a Mineral Rights Attorney
It doesn’t matter if you own the mineral rights, the property rights, or are unsure; you would be wise to contact a mineral rights attorney for legal assistance.
It is crucial to hire an attorney specializing in oil, gas, and mineral rights, as they have a firm understanding of the law and extensive experience in various cases, such as mineral rights discrepancies and defects in title to mineral rights.
Also, an experienced mineral rights attorney can expertly negotiate the sales of mineral rights, quickly resolve lease provision disputes, and tackle non-payment or delayed payment of royalties, to name a few issues.
Check for Oil
After finding oil and hiring an experienced attorney, you must take the steps to check how much oil is on your land.
Also, you might be shocked to learn you don’t need to dig deep to check for oil, as you might have certain rock types on your land to indicate how much oil is below the surface.
Make a more informed decision without digging by requesting a geologist or geophysicist to examine your land’s rock samples, and they can then advise on the best next steps.
For example, they might recommend hiring an expert to survey your land to identify if it has extensive oil reserves. They might study how sound travels through the land, as it will indicate the rock types hidden underneath your feet.
There you have it; the steps you need to take if you find oil on your land.
