Putting your Hands on "Missing" Money

by Grace W. Weinstein

The 50 states hold more than $16 billion in "unclaimed property." Some of it may be yours.

Even if you've kept meticulous financial records, some things have a way of slipping through the cracks. For example, a Florida man found $1,400 waiting for him in Virginia. The money was from annuities purchased for him by his parents when he was young, annuities they never told him about.

In a more dramatic example, seven heirs shared more than $500,000 in royalties from oil exploration—all stemming from a man who purchased mineral rights in North Dakota in 1935 and put the title in his daughter's name. The seven were grandchildren of the original purchaser.

Unclaimed property is rarely this dramatic—or this substantial. Typically it takes the form of abandoned bank accounts, utility deposits, insurance proceeds, even merchandise refunds and gift certificates.

Whatever the amount, it's worthwhile—and easy—to see if you have money coming to you.

If you have online access, check out the Web site sponsored by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA), www.missingmoney.com. About half of the states and the District of Columbia currently participate in this collaborative effort, with more states expected to come on board.

You can also link to every state's unclaimed-property office at NAUPA's site, www.unclaimed.org, by clicking on "Owners," then "Find Property."

No online access? Send a stamped self-addressed envelope to NAUPA, P.O. Box 11950, Lexington, KY 40578, for a list of all the state unclaimed property offices and their addresses.

Unclaimed property is generally held forever by the states, although interest earned on the property may go into a state general fund or an education fund. A few states are actively seeking owners, but, in most cases, you'll have to conduct your own search to see what's out there in your name. One note of caution: You do not have to pay a finder's fee to a private search firm. In fact, suspicion is in order if any outfit requests such a fee because the information is generally available at no cost.

Source: CreativeLiving Magazine, Autumn 2002, The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company