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Sell mineral rights in Michigan
Last reviewed June 2026
Michigan produced about 4 million barrels of crude oil in 2025, so there is genuine buyer demand and a wide gap between the first letter in the mail and the real number. If you want to sell mineral rights in Michigan, competition is how you close that gap.
Quick answer: To sell mineral rights in Michigan, get competing written offers instead of taking the first letter in the mail. Value is driven mostly by which basin the tract sits in, with the Michigan Basin in highest demand, plus production and lease terms. Michigan minerals can revert after 20 years of nonuse, so gather your records before you sell. Submit your tract once and compare offers from vetted buyers, with no upfront fee.
More buyers, a wider spread, more reason to compete
Demand in Michigan is driven by the Antrim Shale and the Niagaran reef trend. The catch is that more buyers also means more lowball letters, so the spread between the first offer and the best one is wide. Competition closes it.
How Michigan treats mineral ownership
This is the part of Michigan law that matters most before you sell. Michigan's Dormant Minerals Act applies to oil and gas and reverts a dormant interest to the surface owner after 20 years with no sale, lease, development or recorded notice.
Preservation is straightforward: record a notice of intent to preserve, or use the oil and gas interest within 20 years (Mich. Comp. Laws 554.291). A clean record of use makes a sale faster. Forced pooling is used here, so a tract can be brought into a unit by order when owners do not all agree.
What moves Michigan mineral value
The gas acreage draws the deepest pool of buyers, with the Michigan Basin at the center. The Antrim Shale gas belt and the Niagaran reef trend sits on a different curve. The counties of Otsego, Montmorency, Kalkaska, Manistee see some of the strongest demand in the state.
After location comes the state of the interest. A producing interest with a steady check is worth a multiple of that income, leased but undrilled acreage is priced on the odds of a well, and raw unleased acreage is the most speculative of the three. Offers are quoted in net mineral acres and a decimal interest, so pin down your acreage and share first and the comparison stays honest. Reaching out to buyers one at a time, the shotgun approach, almost always leaves money on the table, because no single buyer is forced to compete.
For a first estimate on a producing interest, run the royalty calculator, then read the value guide for the factors that move the number.
Selling Michigan minerals, start to close
The path is the same whether you have one tract or many. Send the county and your interest with any check stub or lease you have, we bring competing written offers from vetted buyers, you compare them side by side, and you close through a licensed closing or title company. There is no upfront fee and you can walk away at any point.
Michigan mineral and royalty facts
- Oil and gas production, 2025: about 4 million barrels of crude oil. U.S. EIA
- State severance or production tax: Oil 6.6 percent, gas 5 percent (4 percent stripper).
- State income tax on royalty income: Yes, taxed as income.
- Dormant mineral act: Yes, 20 years of nonuse can start a lapse.
- Forced pooling: Yes.
Taxes when you sell or hold Michigan minerals
Two layers of tax matter. When you sell, mineral rights held more than a year are generally taxed by the IRS as a long term capital gain rather than ordinary income. While you hold and collect royalties, that money is ordinary income, though the IRS allows a percentage depletion deduction, commonly 15 percent for oil and gas, that shelters part of it.
At the state level, Michigan taxes oil and gas royalty income, and a gain on a sale, as part of its state income tax. Separately, Michigan levies a severance tax with oil at 6.6 percent and gas at 5 percent of gross market value, and a reduced 4 percent rate for stripper and marginal wells at the wellhead, which is why a buyer values the net royalty you actually receive, not the gross.
General information, not tax advice. Confirm your situation with a CPA or tax advisor. Sources: the IRS on capital gains and depletion, the Michigan Department of Treasury, and our state tax on mineral and royalty income page.
Where your Michigan mineral interest is on record
Three places hold the paper trail. The deed that conveyed your minerals is recorded with the county recorder or clerk where the land sits. Well and production records are kept by the state oil and gas regulator, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Oil, Gas and Minerals Division. Unclaimed royalty money, from checks that never reached an owner, sits with the state unclaimed property program.
Start here: build your checklist with our unclaimed royalties finder, and see how active your county is with the oil and gas production lookup.
Common questions
How do I sell mineral rights in Michigan?
Tell us the county and your interest, add a check stub or lease if you have one, and we bring competing offers from vetted buyers. You choose the best and close through a licensed closing or title company.
Can my Michigan minerals lapse if I do not use them?
Yes. Michigan's Dormant Minerals Act applies to oil and gas and reverts a dormant interest to the surface owner after 20 years with no sale, lease, development or recorded notice. Record a notice of intent to preserve, or use the oil and gas interest within 20 years (Mich. Comp. Laws 554.291).
Which Michigan plays draw the most competing offers?
The Michigan Basin sees the most active bidding, and competing offers there routinely beat the first letter in the mail.
What is a non-participating royalty interest (NPRI)?
An NPRI is a share of production revenue with no right to lease the minerals or take a lease bonus. It is fully sellable and valued on the income it pays, much like a producing royalty.
Do I sign a division order before selling?
A division order just verifies your decimal share so the operator pays you right. Signing one to get paid does not commit you to a sale and does not surrender ownership.
Is getting Michigan mineral offers free?
Yes. Competing offers and a value are free, with no upfront fee and no obligation to sell.
What taxes apply when I sell Michigan minerals?
A sale is generally treated as the sale of a capital asset, so federal capital gains rules usually apply, while royalty checks are ordinary income and the operator pays state severance tax on production. Some producing minerals are also taxed locally. See the state tax index for specifics, and confirm with a tax professional.
Does Michigan tax oil and gas royalty income?
Yes. Michigan taxes oil and gas royalty income, and a gain on a sale, as part of its state income tax. Federal tax applies on top.
What is the severance tax on oil and gas in Michigan?
Michigan levies a severance tax with oil at 6.6 percent and gas at 5 percent of gross market value, and a reduced 4 percent rate for stripper and marginal wells. Royalty owners bear their pro rata share, shown as a deduction on the monthly check. See the Michigan Department of Treasury for the current figure.
How do I find out what minerals I own in Michigan?
Check the county recorder where the land sits for the deed, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy, Oil, Gas and Minerals Division for well and production records, and the state unclaimed property program for any unclaimed royalty money. Our unclaimed royalties finder builds the checklist.
More on selling
How to sell mineral rights, what they are worth, selling oil and gas royalties, selling inherited minerals, and the Michigan mineral rights law page. Also see selling in Illinois and Kentucky.
See what your Michigan minerals are really worth
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