What your royalty actually borrows in 2026

The headline number on most royalty-loan websites is “borrow up to 24× your monthly royalty income.” That number is real — Permian wells with strong operators and healthy decline curves regularly hit it. But it’s also the top of the range, and most files don’t get there.

Here’s how the math actually works, with a real-feeling example to anchor it.

The base multiple is set by basin.

Each Texas basin has a different production profile, a different decline behavior, and different operator dynamics. Our 2026 base multiples land roughly:

• Permian (Midland + Delaware): 22–24×. Strong, predictable, deep operator bench.
• Eagle Ford: 20–22×. Slightly steeper decline than Permian, but high deliverability up front.
• Haynesville: 18–20×. Gas economics, so commodity exposure matters more in pricing.
• Barnett & East Texas legacy: 16–20×. Mature fields, more predictable but lower upside.

That gets you the starting point. From there, we adjust up or down based on the specifics of your file.

What pushes the multiple up.

• An operator with a clean reporting history and an active permit pipeline in your section.
• Multiple wells producing on the same lease (smooths the income stream).
• A decline curve that’s stabilized into its slow late-life phase.
• A royalty interest as opposed to a working interest (no expense exposure).

What pushes the multiple down.

• A single-well royalty with no offset development planned.
• Production volatility — months bouncing $400–$2,800 instead of holding $1,400 steady.
• Operator concerns: late reporting, payment disputes, slow permits.
• Working-interest holdings with capex calls outstanding or pending.

A worked example: $500/month, East Texas legacy.

Let’s say you have a small inherited royalty interest in Rusk County. Monthly checks have been running $450–$550 for the last 18 months, fairly steady. The operator is one we know well, has reported on time for years, and the wells are 12+ years old (deep into late-life decline).

Here’s the file:

• Base multiple (East Texas legacy): 18×.
• Operator quality adjustment: +1× (clean history).
• Wells past peak decline: +0× (already priced into base).
• Effective multiple: 19×.
• Loan amount: ~$9,500.
• Repayment: from royalty checks over ~24 months.

A worked example: $2,400/month, Permian.

Same exercise on a 3-well Reeves County royalty:

• Base multiple (Permian): 24×.
• Operator quality adjustment: +0× (already at top of range).
• Multiple wells on lease: already priced in.
• Effective multiple: 24×.
• Loan amount: ~$57,600.
• Repayment: from royalty checks over ~36 months.

The number you actually get.

We don’t quote ranges and let you guess where in the band you’ll land. Every TCT file gets a specific number, with the math behind it laid out so you can see exactly why. If you’ve been wondering what your statements would actually borrow, send them over — we’ll come back with the number and the math inside 48 hours.