Title: Identify the Interest in the County Record
The review begins with the record owner, county, legal description, deed chain, probate or trust instruments, reservations, assignments, lease, unit instruments, and any curative work already known. A payor decimal can help, but it does not replace recorded title.
Decimal: Rebuild the Owner's Share
Tract acres, ownership fraction, lease royalty, unit allocation, depth or formation limits, product allocation, and payor setup should reconcile to the decimal shown on the division order and statement. Any gap becomes a question rather than a hidden assumption.
Well: Separate Production History From Future Inventory
Existing wells are reviewed through volumes, products, decline, downtime, workovers, operator changes, and unit history. Permits, offsets, undeveloped benches, and possible recompletions stay in a separate development layer with their own timing and uncertainty.
Netback: Bridge Benchmark Gas to the Owner's Check
Benchmark price, regional basis, BTU adjustment, NGL yield, gathering, compression, dehydration, processing, transportation, marketing, taxes, and accounting adjustments explain how gross production becomes net owner revenue.
Transfer: Read the Transaction Behind the Offer
The offer belongs beside the property schedule, included fractions, depths, formations, wells, effective date, revenue cutoff, title standard, adjustment formula, diligence period, warranties, retained rights, funding conditions, and final deed.
Closing: Keep the Five Lines Reconciled
Title schedules, curative documents, signer authority, settlement calculations, conveyance exhibits, recording instructions, payor notices, and post-closing revenue treatment should all refer to the same interest that was underwritten and accepted.
