Property Ownership

Iowa's subsurface (mineral) rights can be sold or leased to oil and gas companies. When sold separately, the resulting ownership arrangement is called:

AFee simple defeasible
BSeverance of the mineral estate from the surface estate✓ Correct
CCooperative ownership
DChattel real

Explanation

When mineral rights are separately conveyed, the mineral estate is 'severed' from the surface estate, creating two distinct property interests owned by different parties. Iowa has relatively limited oil and gas extraction but significant interests in mineral rights exist in some regions.

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