When someone asks me “what are my minerals worth,” the honest answer is: it depends. But it depends on a fairly short list of things. Here are the five that matter most.

1. Location. Which basin your minerals sit in, and how productive the rock is there, is the single biggest factor. The same acreage can be worth wildly different amounts depending on geology.

2. Production. Are there wells already producing on or near your property, and how much are they making? Existing production with a track record is easier to value than acreage that’s never been drilled.

3. Nearby activity. Permits and rigs close to your minerals are a strong hint that more development could be coming — and that tends to lift value.

4. Prices. Oil and gas prices move constantly, and they flow straight through to what buyers are willing to pay. That’s why I put the live oil price right on this site.

5. Your specific interest. The exact size and type of what you own — net acres, royalty rate, whether it’s producing — changes the math a lot. Two neighbors can own very different things.

Here’s the catch: no rule of thumb captures all five for your specific property. That’s what a real valuation is for. If you’d like one, Royalty Ridge can put together a property-specific evaluation — and I’m happy to walk you through what it means in plain English.