Unclaimed Property Blog

When it comes to unclaimed property laws and the ways that funds can be replaced in the hands of their owners, there are a great deal of misconceptions that seem to linger about. These range vastly from the truth at times, but also can be slight variations from the truth that can be confusing at times for the public. Either way, it is important to decipher these truths about unclaimed property search laws so that people can gain access to their belongings without having to jump through an assortment of hoops in order to do so. Keep reading to find out what some of these misconceptions are along with the truth behind their misunderstandings.

As of a last estimate, “The North Carolina Department of State Treasurer holds nearly $600 million in unclaimed property”. This roughly translates into one in eight North Carolinians have unclaimed money lying with the state treasury.

In the past year, over $39 million in unclaimed property has been returned. Like most of the other states, North Carolina’s unclaimed property consists of bank accounts, wages, utility deposits, insurance policy proceeds, stocks, bonds, and contents of safe deposit boxes that typically have been abandoned for one to five years.

According to the State Constitution, the interest earnings on the fund go to needy and worthy North Carolina public university and community college students.

New York has the unenviable reputation of having the fastest rising pile of unclaimed money out of all the states in the country. The unclaimed property list continues to grow at an alarming rate in New York. Almost $25 million inactive bank, business, and government accounts all contribute towards this million dollar unclaimed property amount. While the state treasury is taking all the relevant steps to locate the owners of unclaimed funds, the success rate has still not reached a satisfactory level.

With unclaimed assets increasing by the day, it would not be surprising that your ancestral unclaimed assets might be more than you can imagine. Like bonds, trust funds and estates, inheritance money can also be lost because of so many reasons. Ancestral inheritance money can be because of a variety of reasons:

A deceased relative left no written will
Your relative switched funds over to another bank
Multiple address changes were done before your dear ones left this world
A contested estate was left behind or a life insurance policy that was never cashed in

Ebay has become the latest place for unclaimed assets to be found and purchased. Unclaimed items from across the globe can be found at Ebay at amazingly cheap prices. Items ranging from abandoned safety deposit boxes and police confiscated items are being auctioned to the highest bidder on Ebay.

Some of the most common unclaimed property on Ebay are from Safety deposit boxes. By law, any safety deposit box which has not been claimed for 3 years (in most of the states), is turned over to the state’s unclaimed property division. At this point of time state may decide to auction the items of the deposit box.

With the rise of unclaimed property, local police stations have taken measures to decrease the amounts. police auctions are often considered a great place for a great deal. Most of these auctions are held to dispose of vehicles and surplus/obsolete equipment.

They are also held for such things as recovered items, unclaimed or stolen goods, seized items and much more. Some of the other sought after items from the police department auctions are cars, communication equipment, cameras, and more. Everything that is auctioned through the Police department is in a good shape and well maintained due to strict maintenance schedules.

Unclaimed gift cards have become a new source of unclaimed money in America. Here are some gift card related statistics that intends to reveal the gift card circulation in America and the volume of unclaimed gift cards that are in the unclaimed money pool:

Expired gift card money has been a concern this holiday season. The gift season is in full glory starting from Thanksgiving up till the New Year. The chances are that you are either the recipient of a gift or you are planning to give a gift to someone close to your heart. Gift cards are the most common form of gifts being exchanged during the holiday season.

Iowa’s Treasure Hunt has benefited many, reuniting with unclaimed money. A large number of people have already benefited from The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt program and it has already returned over $122 million in unclaimed property to more than 310,000 rightful owners of unclaimed money. In Iowa, unclaimed money was considered unrealistic and out of bounds for the most part. “We get millions of dollars in each year,” Fitzgerald stated. “We believe the best way to find people are to ask others in their community to help us. That’s why we are sending out the top 25 list.”

More states are considering the use of unclaimed money for the benefit of the state. The prolonged economic slump has forced a lot of state governments and agencies to rethink their operational and financial strategy. It is hardly surprising that the state of Delaware, like California, is fighting hard to continue the various development projects. Taking a cue from California, Delaware is trying to utilize a key source of revenue: state unclaimed money.