Free natural gas usage rights (tenant, documentation, fee, properties)

[seeuy2k]

I recently purchased 3 acres of property in Lewis county, West Virginia. The property has an old cabin located on it, which I am restoring. This is the original home which had been on a larger plat of property which has been divided. There is a natural gas well on the property. I have heard that since this is the original home on the property that I am entitled to free gas from the well. The cabin was hooked up to the well in the past. Any information on this matter would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance. seeuy2k

[chet everett]

Seems rather unlikely. Relatives in Michigan have a farm with a natural gas well. The gas from the well is sold to a energy company that I believe there is a "well services company" that runs the gas into the massive pipeline network.

That company pays my relatives a "mineral lease" and/or actual production revenues on the gas that the well services company sells to the gas utility. The gas utility has to dry the gas and add the stinky stuff and make sure everything is safe before that gas is piped back to homeowners...

MichPSC-About MI's Gas Industry

[Donn2390]

Usually, when you buy a home or property, the purchase doesn't include mineral rights.
Check the contract, or ask your realtor.

[Bill Keegan]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

Usually, when you buy a home or property, the purchase doesn't include mineral rights.
Check the contract, or ask your realtor.

It doesn't?
Why not?

Here in NJ, when you buy a property, you get everything, including any mineral rights, unless those are specifically excluded for some reason.

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by seeuy2k

I recently purchased 3 acres of property in Lewis county, West Virginia. The property has an old cabin located on it, which I am restoring. This is the original home which had been on a larger plat of property which has been divided. There is a natural gas well on the property. I have heard that since this is the original home on the property that I am entitled to free gas from the well. The cabin was hooked up to the well in the past. Any information on this matter would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance. seeuy2k

That is a good local WV question.

I have had "free gas" before. But that was years ago in a rental house. It was cool. Actually, c-o-l-d, since the heaters were shot.

I don't think the "free gas" conveys automatically, but has to be negotiated and documented.
Your Seller should have had some documentation of the free gas for you.
The gas lease may have mentioned free gas to the owner.
Sometimes there is a cap on how much gas is free on a monthly or annual basis.

You may benefit from talking to the closing attorney, or your agent, for further guidance on a way to go, but it seems to me that unless there is a WV law awarding you gas, or a lease mentioning an appurtenant to the land gas supply to the property owner, that you would not be entitled just because you are the current owner of the surface rights to the property.

[Donn2390]

Originally Posted by Bill Keegan

It doesn't?
Why not?

Here in NJ, when you buy a property, you get everything, including any mineral rights, unless those are specifically excluded for some reason.

Mineral Rights: They Can't Sell What They Don't Own - Searchlight Crusade

[DMenscha]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

Usually, when you buy a home or property, the purchase doesn't include mineral rights.
Check the contract, or ask your realtor.

Actually in most of CA the mineral rights are still attached to the property. Exceptions being the oil and gas producing parts of the state and the gold country (which is where I practice). Even here over 98% of the parcels in the county have the mineral rights attached.

Your cited article is quite incorrect. That isn't your website is it?

[Donn2390]

Originally Posted by DMenscha

Actually in most of CA the mineral rights are still attached to the property. Exceptions being the oil and gas producing parts of the state and the gold country (which is where I practice). Even here over 98% of the parcels in the county have the mineral rights attached.

Your cited article is quite incorrect. That isn't your website is it?

Nope, not my site. Having purchased many properties in California, it's just something I knew. When someone questioned it, I just googled it, and many examples came up proving me correct. I just grabbed one and posted it.
Why is that article incorrect, but you're not..?

[DMenscha]

In my county there are about 45,000 individual parcels and about 900 mineral rights parcels. I would imagine in the Signal Hill area of Long Beach and the oilfields around Taft in Kern county the opposite is true. In the SF bay area I would expect that almost all parcels still have mineral rights running with the land. I understand that Texas also has a large ratio of mineral rights to fee parcels.

I just thought that a pretty broad brush was being used to paint the picture.

I've been wrong before

[Donn2390]

Well, I will defer to you, since you are a broker, and I'm not qualified to argue with you. I will say all the properties I have purchased, well, most, have been in Orange County, so maybe that is close enought to the oil wells in Long Beach to make the difference. All of my experiences say mineral rights don't go with the property.
As for the web site I posted, I have no idea who they are, but I have to wonder why their answer would be so contrary..?