Buying Land to Build a Home? Realtor Shares the Importance of Surface and Mineral Rights
The homebuying process can expand a person’s vocabulary as they learn the ins and outs of things. Suddenly, people can become fluent in things like PITI (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance) and DTI (debt-to-income ratio).
However, there are some terms that people don’t learn until it’s too late. A real estate agent in Georgia says that surface and mineral rights are among the things that homebuyers should learn about when looking for a new property, especially if they plan to buy land for a custom home.
According to TikToker @songsofarealtor, these rights can have a big impact on your property, especially if another company or agency owns the rights, which would allow them to dig on your land without your approval (depending on regional guidelines).
In some cases, that could even delay the construction of your new home there. The good news is, she also explains where you can find out who owns the surface and mineral rights before closing.
Surface and Mineral Right Information Can Be Found During a Thorough Title Search
@songsofarealtor If you want to buy land to build a custom home, make sure you check the deed to confirm you own the surface and mineral rights! How to buy land! #landforsale #realestate #homebuyer #firsttimehomebuyer #homebuyertips ♬ original sound – Maxxi | The Comfy Realtor
Maxxi used a specific example in her video. She asked her followers to imagine what it would feel like to close on a 20-acre parcel of land, only to receive a phone call from a company saying that they plan to start mining granite on the property, offering to compensate the homeowner for the digging once production is done.
She says that a situation like this can arise when a buyer only owns the surface rights, since whoever owns the mineral rights has legal access to the minerals located under the property’s surface. Maxxi says this usually happens when a title search confirms surface ownership but does not identify previously severed mineral rights.
“So PSA to all my people who are in the market to buy a piece of land,” she continued. “It is very important for you to check the deed before purchasing the land to make sure you own the surface and subsurface and mineral rights to the property you are purchasing.”
Commenters Offered More Advice
It seems like a lot of Maxxi’s followers were familiar with this issue, and they shared some additional bits of wisdom in the comments. “Surface, air, and water rights. Check them all,” one person wrote. Another person asked what someone could possibly do with air rights, prompting another commenter to explain that it could limit how high you are allowed to build a home.
“It’s actually harder than people think to retain mineral rights, especially if the land has changed ownership. Hiring a landman to research mineral rights can be important,” another person added.
Interestingly enough, this isn’t something all homebuyers need to worry about. According to Pheasant Energy, not all states separate mineral rights, which makes it important to do a little extra research before you buy. That’s especially true if you’re looking at properties in states where it is more common, which Pheasant Energy says includes, but isn’t limited to, places like Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alaska, Wyoming, and West Virginia.
