Texas Porch

Mineral Rights

Mineral Rights and Surface Rights Can Be Separate

In Loving County, buying land does not always mean you own the oil and gas beneath it — the mineral estate may already belong to someone else.

Loving County Home & Property

Texas law lets the surface estate and the mineral estate be owned by different people. This is common in oil-rich areas like Loving County. You might buy land and build a home, but a separate party could own the right to drill for oil and gas under your feet.

When that happens, the mineral rights holder has priority. They can enter your land to drill, run pipelines, and do seismic work — as long as it is reasonably necessary. The Texas Railroad Commission (RRC) regulates oil and gas operations. But the RRC does not settle disputes between surface and mineral owners. Those disputes are private legal matters. Before buying land in Loving County, check the deed records carefully to find out whether the mineral estate was already severed. Loving County is in RRC District 8 (Midland).

Source to confirm: Railroad Commission of Texas — Oil and Gas Exploration and Surface Ownership FAQ

More Loving County notes

Property Tax

Who Handles Property Taxes in Loving County

Loving County has both an appraisal district and a tax assessor-collector, but the county tax office does not collect property taxes locally.

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Water Supply

Water Is Scarce and Saline in Loving County

Loving County gets about 10 inches of rain a year, and past irrigation projects failed because groundwater here is often too salty to use.

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Hunting & Wildlife

Hunting in Loving County: Mostly Private Land

Loving County sits in the Trans-Pecos region where mule deer and pronghorn live, but nearly all land is private — access requires landowner permission.

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County History

Loving County Was Organized Twice — Oil Made It Stick

Loving County was first organized in 1893 under fraudulent circumstances and collapsed; it was reorganized in 1931 after oil was discovered, and its population has remained among the smallest of any county in the country.

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