If You Lose Your Property in a Tax or Mortgage Foreclosure Sale, Do You Lose Your Mineral Rights Too?

In Texas, mineral rights may or may not be attached to a property or surface rights. Who owns what can vary depending on what a current or former owner did with the property and mineral rights.

Texas allows for surface rights to be severed from mineral rights. When purchasing a property, a deed should make clear whether the sale includes mineral rights.

Surface Rights, Mineral Rights, and Foreclosures

This potential difference in property rights can come into play during foreclosure sales. If someone else owns the mineral rights under a foreclosed property, those rights are not part of the foreclosure sale.

A different person or entity owns those rights, and they are irrelevant to the foreclosure sale. In a way, it’s not different than someone who owns the plot next door to a foreclosed property. Its sole relationship to the foreclosure sale is its close physical proximity.

In situations when a property covers both the surface and mineral rights, both can be foreclosed on. It’s no different than any other property undergoing foreclosure: The entire property is available as part of the sale.

When a property owner has both surface rights and mineral rights, one consideration, ahead of foreclosure, might be selling one or leasing their mineral rights to raise the money necessary to stop the foreclosure sale.

For those who lose mineral rights as part of a foreclosure, they can generally use the same laws on redemption as any other foreclosed property. For example, with a tax lien foreclosure, an owner has two years to redeem the property if the purchaser wasn’t a taxing unit, such as a county or other government agency. A lawyer can help individuals determine if they qualify for the redemption process and how to navigate it.

Hire a Skilled Property Lawyer Who Knows Texas

Foreclosure and mineral rights are two important but complex areas of Texas property law. If you have questions about property ownership and safeguarding your rights, the attorneys at Manfred Law can help. Call us at 713-547-5460 or contact us online to schedule your consultation.