Montana is rich in minerals.There is gold, silver, coal, and talc.You need to do a property search to find out who owns mineral rights.Because mineral rights can be severed from the rest of the property, you will need to search for the owner.An attorney's help may be helpful in this process.
Step 1: Common minerals can be identified.
Oil, gas, and coal are some of the minerals that make up mineral property.
Step 2: Understand the title.
Fee simple title, also called an unified estate, is when the owner of the land also owns the minerals.The mineral rights are owned by someone when they own a piece of property.Fee simple title can be split into different parts.Simple owners can choose to sell their mineral rights.The surface owner is not the owner of the minerals.In Montana, split estates are very common.Over 11 million acres have been divided into mineral and surface rights.You need to know more than who owns the surface of the land when you are looking for mineral rights.Some mineral rights can be sold by owners.If there is both oil and gas on the land, the owner could sell the gas rights but retain the oil rights.Each could be sold to different owners.
Step 3: You have to get a deed.
If you own mineral rights to your property, you should get a copy of your deed.You can get it from the recorder's office.The previous owner may have given you fee simple title.The mineral rights should be recorded in the deed.Sometimes the deed is not accurate.The mineral rights may have been sold off thirty years ago.To find out who owns the mineral rights, you need to perform a title search.
Step 4: The Bureau of Land Management can be contacted.
The United States government has a lot of mineral rights.If the government owns the mineral rights under your property, you should contact the BLM.Someone might own the mineral rights if the U.S. government doesn't.Even if the government says it doesn't own mineral rights, you are still looking for them.
Step 5: Hire a title company.
You need to research the chain of title to find out if a private person owns the rights.You can find out if the mineral rights were sold before you took ownership of the property by performing this search.There is a title search company in the phone book.The American Land Title Association is a national trade association.Click on "For Consumers" at the top of the page to visit the organization's website.
Step 6: The parameters of a title search can be set.
Professional title searches don't go all the way back to the original land grant.They could only trace the title chain back a few decades.You need to tell the title searcher how far back they will go.A title search that goes back 40 years will not be helpful if mineral rights were sold off 120 years ago.You should check to see how far back they are willing to look.You need to search all the way back to the original land grant.
Step 7: Think about hiring a lawyer.
You could hire a lawyer instead of a title company.A lawyer is likely to be more expensive.If you end up owning minerals under your property, you should consider establishing a relationship with a lawyer.You can lease those minerals to someone who will mine them.There is a Lawyer Referral Information Service on the state's bar association website.You can search for a lawyer by specialty.You can call (406) 449-6577 if you want to find a mineral rights lawyer.The hours are Monday to Thursday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Step 8: Visit the recorder.
The office for the county where the land is located is where you start the title search.To find out where the deeds are stored, call the town office.
Step 9: Staff can show you how to search.
Counties have different ways of preserving their property.All deeds can be stored in an electronic format in some offices.You can use the internet in this situation.Bound books will hold the deeds of other offices.Older deeds will be kept in books in other offices.Inform the staff that you are looking for mineral rights.You should be shown how to begin your search by the staff member.
Step 10: Find the deed that preceded it.
You must find the land deed before yours to trace the chain of title.If you bought the land from Mr. Appleton, you should be able to find the deed that transferred the parcel to him.If you find that deed, read it carefully.The owner may have transferred them to someone else or reserved them.You should read the entire deed and any attachments that come with it.
Step 11: Work backwards.
You need to find the deed that Mr. Burton received from the previous owner.Continue to find each deed.This is how you make a chain of title.You should always look to see if the mineral rights have been severed from the property.There is a copy of every deed in the chain of title.You might overlook something if you don't read these documents.If you get a copy of each deed, you can have your lawyer look over them or study them later.
Step 12: There are gaps in the chain of title.
There is a gap when you find a deed but can't find the preceding one.If you can't find the deed to Ms. Dunlap, you have a gap.Mineral rights can be conveyed in a will or divorce decree.You should look for these records when you visit the court clerk.Find out about tax sales.If the owner was delinquent on taxes, the land can be seized and sold at a private tax sale.Tax sale records can be found at the tax assessor's office.
Step 13: Search for mineral property with a title.
You can find the current owner of the mineral rights by creating a chain of title if the owner severed the rights from the estate.You shouldn't assume that the entity given mineral rights in the past is the current owner because mineral right owners can sell their rights to others.Gas mineral rights could have been sold in 1955.The person who bought them in 1955 is unlikely to still own them.If you want to find the current owner of mineral rights, you should hire a lawyer.They are hard to find.