According to the state controller's office, more than 8.2 million individuals and organizations are owed over $5.1 billion in unclaimed property in California. Finding lost money and pursuing a legal claim to any money, stocks, inheritance, or abandoned property involves knowing the specific procedures for reclaiming items. In this article, learn how to find assets and escheat (the transfer of property with unknown ownership) and make a legal claim.
Unclaimed Property in California
All lost money, unclaimed inheritance, stocks, utility deposits, final paychecks, and other forms of unclaimed property in California is managed by the State Controller's Office in the Unclaimed Property Division. Searchers and heirs for unclaimed money start there to find assets and make a legal claim.
Find Assets
To find assets, go to the Unclaimed Property Division's website. On the left site of the page, under "Claiming," click "Start Your Search Now."
When conducting a free unclaimed money search, a few important tips to consider to find assets:
- Internet Explorer is the recommended browser for searching for unclaimed property in California.
- The site warns AOL and Earthlink users about technical difficulties.
- Be sure to choose "individual" if searching for an individual, and "business/government" if searching for lost money for a corporate, non-profit, or government entity.
- Type in full name, but also try variants, such as first initial and last name.
- If searching for someone else, such as a deceased relative, search for all variants of the person's name as well.
Escheat and Legal Claim
The legal term for property with an unknown owner, escheatment takes place when property passes from an individual, business, or government entity into the hands of the state for safe keeping. Escheat occurs, then, when an unclaimed inheritance must be held by someone until the owner is found. That "someone" is the Unclaimed Property Division in California, in this case.
Making a legal claim for lost money to find assets is fairly simple. Print the "Claim Affirmation Form" in the unclaimed property division's web form. Include any identification required by the state. Follow the Claim Filing Instructions, and note that any amounts over $1000 require a notarized letter. Legal claims against escheat aren't difficult, but they do require that each specific step be followed to the letter of the law. In some cases, trustees and executors may need to be contacted if the escheat involves a closed estate.
Lost Money
Searching for unclaimed property in California need not be restricted to the state's website, though. It is possible that other databases contain unclaimed property from deceased relatives, old paychecks, utility deposits, overpaid interest on car loans or mortgages, or other forms of abandoned property and lost money. In the article Free Unclaimed Money Search learn more about national databases that can help searchers to find assets. In addition, each separate state keeps unclaimed money as part of the state's treasury department, so someone searching for unclaimed Washington state funds, for instance, needs to perform a very different series of steps than someone searching for unclaimed property in California.
Whatever the goal, finding unclaimed money can be a joyous experience, and may involve searching for untapped links and databases to find assets and the exact location of lost money. The search is worth it, though, if unclaimed property in California or another state can be found and a legal claim made.
Melanie Zoltan - Melanie Zoltan is a former college professor and administrator who has written for About.com, PCWorld, Brain Child, Thomson Gale, and ...
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