5% of Minnesotans Have over $100 of unclaimed money

Page Title - No value Fox has learned that 5% of Minnesotans are owed over $100. And they hit the streets try to find people... And sure enough the 8th person they asked (a local waitress) found out that she had some cash owed to her from an old employer.

Illinois Treasurer Holds $1.6 billion of missing money

News out of Springfield, IL shows that the state Treasurer's office which is headed by Daniel Rutherford has over $1.6 billion of unclaimed assets under the control of his office. The amount has swelled by over $100 million in the prior year. People have left dormant bank accounts and brokerage accounts can go and do free online internet searches to see if they have any cash coming to them. Also--it doesn't even have to be yours... You could be entitled to unclaimed funds from dead parents or deceased grandparents. One thing that kind of stinks is that when the state holds onto these funds you aren't earning any income or interest on the overall balance.

Wisconsin Treasurer Helps Veterans Find Unclaimed Money

Channel 5 in Green Bay, Wisconsin tells us how the state treasurer helps military veterans find unclaimed money. So far the program has helped match $76,000 to its rightful owners. At first glance, many people think they're getting scammed. But the treasurer is persistent and anybody can search his website for their own unclaimed assets.

The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt

The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt is operated by the Iowa State Treasurer. The treasure hunt allows Iowans to do a free internet search for unclaimed money and assets.

They also list a few really helpful Questions & Answers that help people figure out how to see if they have any money coming to them:

What is Unclaimed Property?
Unclaimed property can be any financial asset that has been abandoned by its owner for a period of time specified by law. Common types of unclaimed property include:

• dormant bank accounts
• utility refunds
• uncashed checks
• unclaimed wages
• safe-deposit boxes
• insurance dividends
• stock certificates and dividends

How does property become abandoned?

• People move and simply forget about an account or deposit.
• People get a check, place it in a drawer (something they will take care of later) and forget
• When people die, relatives are often unaware of an old bank account, lock box or a stock the deceased may have owned.
• People divorce, move, perhaps remarry and forget to notify everyone.
• A clerical error at a company; perhaps the name or street is displaced or altered by a honest mistake causing mail to be returned as nondeliverable to the company.

Why does the state become involved?
The courts have long maintained the states' rights are derivative of the missing owner. In other words, the state stands in the shoes of the missing owner.

How long do I have to claim my money?
The State Treasurer's office maintains custody until the rightful owner or his or her heirs claims the money. At no time is an owner (or legal heirs) barred from claiming unclaimed property.

What does Iowa do to find the owners of unclaimed property?

• First class mailings
• Publication of the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt
• Listings displayed at the State Fair, Clay County Fair, and the Cattle Congress
• TV special segments for the news
• Public Service Announcements
• Radio spots

Do I have to pay to get my money back from the state treasurer?

• No! The rightful owners or their legal heirs always have the right to claim the assets, there is no time limit to file a claim, and the State Treasurer Office provides this service free of charge.
• If you are contacted by an individual or firm offering to return your property to you for a fee, contact the state treasurer's office before you sign an agreement.
• However, if you do sign an agreement for property held by the State Treasurer's office, the law is very specific. Again, before signing any agreement, please read the following excerpts from the Iowa Code.

Florida Treasure Hunt - Search for Unclaimed Money

The Florida Treasure Hunt helps Floridians locate lost and unclaimed money.  Anybody can conduct a free internet search for missing cash at the Treasurer's website.

Currently, the Chief Financial Officer of Florida holds unclaimed property accounts valued at more than $1 billion, mostly from dormant accounts in financial institutions, insurance and utility companies, securities and trust holdings. In addition to money and securities, unclaimed property includes tangible property such as watches, jewelry, coins, currency, stamps, historical items and other miscellaneous articles from abandoned safe deposit boxes. Unclaimed money is deposited into the state school fund, where it is used for public education. There is, however, no statute of limitations, and citizens have the right to claim their property any time at no cost.

If you have questions regarding how the FL treasure hunt works, you can reference the state's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page...  Where you can find how long the process takes?  What forms are required? and What happens if you moved out-of-state?

It's also important to note that you can search on the website to see if any deceased/dead relatives have any unclaimed assets that may rightfully become the property of their estate (and eventually you).

The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt

For Iowans looking to see if they have missing money that the state owes them, the politicians in Des Moines wants them to check out how they can find unclaimed assets in the state of Iowa.

The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt program has returned over $122 million in unclaimed property to more than 310,000 individuals since Fitzgerald began the program. "We get millions of dollars in each year," Fitzgerald stated."We believe the best way to find people is to ask others in their community to help us. That's why we are sending out the top 25 list."

Unclaimed property refers to money and other assets held by financial institutions or companies that have lost contact with the property's owner for a specific period of time. State law requires these institutions and companies to annually report and deliver unclaimed property to the State Treasurer's Office, where it is held until the owner or heir of the property is found. Common forms of unclaimed property include savings or checking accounts, stocks, uncashed checks, life insurance policies, utility security deposits, and safe deposit box contents.

Florida Treasure Hunt helps people find Unclaimed Funds

The Fort Myers News Press reports that the State of Florida's Chief Financial Officer has recently been on mission to return missing money and assets to Florida's residents.

Thousands of safety deposit boxes go unclaimed every year---and those assets end up with the state for safe keeping while the state tries to locate the owner (or waiting for the owner to contact the state.)

Fortunately, it's easy to search and find your unclaimed assets and missing money (or your family's), you can just do a Florida Treasure Hunt or use one over several web search tools to see if you're owed cash.

Billions of Unclaimed Treasury Bonds

Today Yahoo reported on Billions in unclaimed bonds there are plenty of us out there (or maybe our parents and grandparents) that bought bonds during World War II and never got around to cashing them in.

The good news is that, assuming that you can find the bonds in a lock-box or in some file cabinet; you'll be able to get the face value of the bonds. The bad news, the bonds haven't been earning any interest for years.

Additionally, you can search to see if you have any unclaimed bonds (issued after 1974) by searching on the Treasury Hunt website. It doesn't take much time to search to see if you have any missing money or unclaimed assets... It's better have the cash dash into your pockets/wallets rather than letting it sit in some treasury department.

Florida Returns $174 million in unclaimed money in 2008-2009 FY

Click on Image for a bigger chart

According to the state of Florida, almost $300 million of unclaimed money was turned over to the state treasurer during the 2008 - 2009 fiscal year and almost $175 million was turned over their respective owners---and since 300,000 claims were successfully filed, that means that the average successful claim was worth $1,000!

Over the last 6 fiscal years, Florida has on average collected $150 million more than it has given out in its "missing Money" campaign---All of this extra money is figuratively "kept in trust", but in actuality is used to help fund the state's educational programs. So if Grandma had an unknown bank account for $50,000 that was turned over to the state in 2005, the state used that money once the bank turned it over to the state---but if Grandma's heirs discover the missing cash, and file a claim---the state will gladly issue them a check.