Have you ever meant to follow up on a old utility deposit but just haven’t? What about a savings account with only a few dollars that you didn’t think was worth pursuing? A final paycheck from a former employer? If your money goes unclaimed for a period of time, it is considered abandoned, usually taken and put into an unclaimed property fund. There your money sits, maybe even earning interest (depending on who is holding it), until you, the rightful owner, show up to claim it.
A St. Petersburg Times staff writer compiled 10 Tips, an article detailing how money goes unclaimed and how best to track it down.
+ 10 tips to guide you in your unclaimed property search.- 10 tips to guide you in your unclaimed property search.
1. How it happens. Unclaimed property can include stocks, bonds, mutual funds, credit balances, uncashed checks, utility refunds, inactive bank accounts, safe deposit box contents, court deposits, tax refunds, government-guaranteed mortgage insurance refunds and pensions. If you’ve moved, switched jobs, changed your name or had a relative die, you might have money waiting for you.
Well, that seems to include most everyone, now, doesn’t it?
2. A big clue. Many businesses search public records for unclaimed property, then send out letters to people offering to help them retrieve their money for a finder’s fee of 20 to 30 percent. If you receive such a letter, you likely have money waiting for you.
My husband got one of these letters stating he had almost $800 in unclaimed money waiting for him. All he had to do was mail them his social security number, current address and a photocopy of his driver’s license. Can you guess where this letter ended up? Right in the trash. We didn’t take it seriously until another company sent us a letter with the same dollar amount. This leads us right into #3.
3. Do it yourself for free. There’s no need to pay the hefty finder’s fee because it’s easy to conduct your own search free of charge on the Internet.
We started on Google and searched for “unclaimed property” and “Florida” to find the website where we could claim my husband’s money directly, bypassing the company looking to take a finder’s fee for their discovery.
4. Know where to look. MissingMoney.com allows you to do searches for multiple states. If your name doesn’t show up in the database, don’t despair: Your records may not be recent enough to be listed, and you can write to states where you’ve lived to ask about missing property.
Thirty states currently contribute to the MissingMoney.com national database. Eight more states are planning to participate and that leaves twelve lonely states that do not. MissingMoney, however, has done some research for you and lists addresses for all of the states detailing who to contact if you are in search of missing money in your name.
5. Conduct a federal investigation. If your funds are held by the federal government rather than a state, you must correspond directly with the federal agency that owes you money.
See Related Links on the MissingMoney website.
6. Search for lost savings bonds. Most U.S. savings bonds stop earning interest after 30 years. If you have a matured savings bond, cash it in. For information about lost or missing savings bonds, go to: www.savingsbonds.gov/sav/sbfaqcs2.htm#Lost.
… and the associated form, PD F 1048, to go along with this.
7. Be persistent about pension funds. Millions of dollars in pension benefits go unclaimed because the beneficiaries can’t be located.
Search the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
8. Hunt for missing tax refunds. The Internal Revenue Service is holding millions in tax refunds that were returned to the agency as “undeliverable.” To investigate, visit www.irs.ustreas.gov or call toll-free 1-800-829-1040.
This usually happens because a person moves before their tax refund is delivered. As soon as you move, you should complete a change of address with the IRS via form 8822. The Where’s My Refund page is useful in tracking down a refund, but you need specific information such as the refund amount.
9. Think about mortgage refunds. If you had a Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgage and paid an insurance premium, you should have gotten that money back when you sold your home. Visit www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/comp/refunds/index.cfm or call toll-free 1-800-697-6967.
HUD has an FHA Refund FAQ page. It states that you may be eligible for a refund if you: acquired your loan after September 1, 1983; paid an upfront mortgage insurance premium at closing; and did not default on your mortgage payments.
10. Consider stock certificates. To find out whether old stocks are worth anything, visit the Web sites of Stock Search International (www.stocksearchintl.com) or R.M. Smythe (www.smytheonline.com). Both companies will do stock research for fees of $75 or more.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t include the MissingMoney.com’s list on how to keep your property from becoming unclaimed.
Keep a record of all bank and savings accounts.
Record all stock certificates and be sure to cash all dividends received.
Record all utility deposits, including telephone deposits.
Respond in writing to any requests for confirmation of account balances with banks, stockbrokers and utility companies.
Prepare a check list of all accounts to be notified when you change your address. Share this list with a family member or trusted advisor.
Notify your bank, broker, credit card issuers, employer, 401K administrator, insurance contacts, mortgage lenders, doctors, attorney, accountant, investment accounts, and others of your name changes due to marriage, divorce or other legal action.
Cash all checks promptly upon receipt.
Good luck and happy hunting!
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This entry was posted
on Tuesday, August 30th, 2005 at 9:23 pm by Liz
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