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by bandushrew 1646 days ago
Why are there so many absent landowners?
2 comments

Much of West Texas is barren wasteland not suitable for human habitation.
It's a trapdoor function--intentionally so.

Ownership is buried beneath layers and layers of transfers in the hope that you can't reverse the chain if liability pops up.

Of course, if something like, say, the fracking boom in Pennsylvania comes along instead, suddenly all the owners magically appear and start asserting their ownership rights.