Post: #1

(NB: this is regarding those living in the United States; I'm not sure about other jurisdictions.)

If a business owes you (or your business) money but can't reach you because you may have moved, they're required to remit the amount that should have been paid to you to the State. The State then holds this money until you run an Unclaimed Property search and claim the amount that is owed to you or your business.

Common examples include:

-Apartment complex deposits that may be due back to you, but you moved before you could be paid and did not provide a forwarding address

-Utility company deposits still owed to you

-Bank accounts that may have had deposits made after you closed it, or were in transition at the time you closed it

-Company royalties due to you

-Mortgage, insurance or title company payments

-Government or educational institution payments due to you

-Wages due to you by an old employer

-Safe deposit box contents

-Amounts owed to your business from other businesses, customers, vendors or suppliers.

Generally, the period of time an employer or other entity has to contact you before sending the payment to the State is 1 year; however, periods are longer for items such as stored value cards (1 to 3 years), safe deposit and other deposit accounts (5 years), and traveler’s checks (15 years). The default for any other property not specifically listed on the Comptroller’s website is 3 years.

To see if you're owed funds, run a search for " *your state* unclaimed property search " - you'll likely be directed to their Department of Revenue's free online database search. Each state has its own unclaimed property website, so if you moved from another state or have ever lived in another state, try checking that state’s unclaimed property website too.

It can also be fun to check for family/friends/coworkers/etc. I found an old apartment deposit for my sister from when she was in college and a few invoices for my uncle's company that he had missed after changing locations.

Good luck and happy hunting!

Post: #2

Is the term escheatment?

I know I used to do the accounting for gift cards at a medium-sized grocery chain and we had to escheat old balances to the state (or at least account for it separately as a liability).

Post: #3

Great tip. I've found a few hundred bucks in my name, and well over $2k for friends. It is an easy way to plug your friends and family into the databases and give them free "gifts" that don't cost you anything to claim what they didn't know belonged to them.

Post: #4

True story, did an unclaimed property search one day for friends names out of boredom and found them a good chunk of money. They bought me beers after that for a while.

The downside is the whole process can take several months to be completely finisihed. Not something to do if you immediately need money. You will have to prove to the state you're entitled to the money.

Post: #5

(12-28-2018 04:12 PM)heavy Wrote:  Is the term escheatment?

I know I used to do the accounting for gift cards at a medium-sized grocery chain and we had to escheat old balances to the state (or at least account for it separately as a liability).

Not sure - just passing along a note from my CPA

Post: #6

Thanks for posting this reminder. Just found my name on the list as well as my deceased Grandmother

Post: #7

There are a few websites you should check. More info here:

https://clark.com/personal-finance-credi...oney-easy/

Check every 6 months or so. The reason is because the law in each state requires companies that hold it - like banks or utilities - to send it to the government. The state government attempts to locate you, and they hold it for a specified time. After that, the government keeps it (escheats).