Hope this is legit and it works out that you get a nice chunk of change, Terry. Your ex got $50K a year? Geeze, I could live on that easy. lol
I'd love to hear that I had an unexpected inheritance. I'm not holding my breath, tho.
You Say I've Inherited What???
by Terry 46 Replies latest jw experiences
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Outaservice
How much are you planning on giving the Watchtower Organization? Enough, would secure you a place on the ark no matter what your beliefs are!
Outaservice (ain't we cousins?)
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Stephanus
Jed, move away from there! Californy is the place you oughta be!
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Alpheta
It is not uncommon in areas where there are "minerals" (gas, oil, coal, etc.) to separately sell the land (the "top" layer of the earth) to someone and yet retain the rights to whatever minerals may be underneath that top layer of dirt. People also sell rights to "air space" over their land but retain the land, retain water rights, retain easement rights to cross-over or build roads, etc. etc.
Get an attorney asap to look at the paperwork. If this person really is an XTO rep, that means that somehow, somewhere along the line, someone took care of probating your great-grandmother's estate and had title to the mineral rights put into the names of the heirs in being and all future heirs, known and unknown. On the other hand, this person could be an "heir finder" who is not being honest with you and is withholding critical information. There are companies that go out and look for the heirs of people who die "intestate" (that is, without a will) but who leave property behind. In such cases, the property is held in trust by the state in which the person died - the property "escheats" to the state. After a certain period of time, usually many years (varies from state to state, if no heirs come forward to file a claim for the property, the state gets the money and it goes into the general fund. These heir-finding companies will "help" you get your share of the property - FOR A FEE, usually a hefty percentage. Of course, they are careful NOT to give you any useful information so you could figure out for yourself in which state the distant relative died so that you could contact the Sec/State of that state directly and make a claim for the escheated assets! But in your case, if you know where your great-grandmother died and this IS an heir-finder company, it would behoove you to get an attorney to investigate further and if there is property in the custody of the Sec/State, make a claim.
So, you need to know with whom you are dealing. Turn it over to your attorney or better yet, one who specializes in leases of exploratory rights and royalties. A specialist in the field will be able to tell you whether the contract terms are kosher. If there is natural gas under that land, it's not going anywhere unless someone drills a well next store, so proceed at a deliberate pace.
BTW, this kind of windfall has never happened to me, but it did happen to someone I used to work with; she was contacted by an heir-finder company and netted about $4,000 as her share of an escheated estate - and found out about second and third removed cousins she never knew existed!
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Junction-Guy
Just be careful and dont count your chickens before they hatch, so to speak.
My family is from the heart of coal mining country in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. When I was about 8 years old, grandma got a letter that said that her great grandfather had left some mineral rights to some property that we didnt even know about, and that we were to start receiving royalty checks from the coal being mined. We got so excited, and started letting our imaginations run wild. On one visit down to Kentucky to see family we even went over to the coal mine and took pics holding blocks of coal. Grandma still has that block of coal sitting on her coffee table. We got the first royalty check and it wasnt too big, but more was definitely on the way. Well guess what? Sometime after the first check we received another letter that stated that her great grandfather had been previously married and that his first set of children were entitled to the mineral rights. There was a small court battle that ensued but in the end they won out and we no longer got the royalties.
Dave
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unclebruce
Great news - goodluck Terry!
unlebruce
lol @ stephanus
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MsMcDucket
Watch out for grifters. Ask him for references, and check them all. Check with the city to see if he has a legit license. Also, check with the Better Business Bureau to see if there are any complaints.
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Mary
Has anybody else ever had something like this happen to them seemingly "out of the blue"?
I may already be a winner in the Publisher Clearing House Sweepstakes.
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unclebruce
WOW Mary ... let's crack open the champers
unc whose relies owned a lead mine in Yorkshire
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Mary
unc whose relies owned a lead mine in Yorkshire
unc, who himself owns a goldmine in the Bega Valley.