News

Over $24,000 In Unclaimed Property Was Recently Released To Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

September 18th, 2012 | Shann

Just last month, back in August of this year, Pennsylvania State Treasurer released about $24,000 in unclaimed property to be given back to it’s rightful owners. It is estimated that almost 2 billion dollars in unclaimed property and money exists in the United States. With all of these funds and properties being turned over to the state treasury it leaves a lot of work and responsibility to try and get it all back to the rightful owners.

While the Pennsylvania State Treasurer, Rob McCord, was visiting the Court House in Luzerne County he said, “This money belongs to the citizens of Luzerne County, so I am pleased we are able to put it back into their hands today. I applaud the initiative of leaders here who stepped forward to investigate and to pursue this claim. We hope the news of this reunification reminds other local governments to take a moment and see whether they or the agencies and departments under their jurisdictions are owed unclaimed property, too.”

The money that was returned to the county as well as it’s residents was in the form of rebates, tax refunds, uncashed payroll checks and even uncashed escrow checks from new home purchases and personal home loan refinancing.

With about 18 million out of the 2 billion in unclaimed property and funds belonging to organizations, local businesses and the people of Luzerne County, every little bit they are able to release and return the the rightful owners really helps. With these unclaimed properties and funds mainly coming from banks and utility companies it makes it very easy to track it all down, it just takes time. Unclaimed property from other resources like security deposits for homes and apartments or refunds from old life or car insurance claims or policies are much harder to track down if you don’t keep track of your personal finances.

Through a chain of command from the Luzerne County Manager to the state controller, a request to track down quite a bit of unclaimed property and funds was sent out. This amount of over $24,000 in these unclaimed funds and properties came from this simple request. So this goes to show that not only should individuals be keeping better track of their finances but with the right people working for the State and Government we will continue to be assisted in getting it all back to the actual owners. Let me warn you that keeping better track of your finances will help but it might not mean you will not be a person with unclaimed property and funds owed to you. Since state law does not require these entities that are holding onto this unclaimed property and funds to report them or contact the owners prior to turning it over to the treasury, quite some time could pass by before an individual may actually even be able to claim these types of funds or property.

McCord is hoping that by placing unclaimed property and funds back with the rightful owners it will then in turn be used to stimulate the economy in the Luzerne County area.

Although Luzerne County unclaimed property is currently still on the rise, government officials are always stepping in to try and aid in getting these funds and properties back to the actual owners. Many state treasurers and controllers are hoping that along with the advances in government, bank and financial technology that better tracking systems will prevent a nationwide epidemic like this from ever happening again.

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$350 Million Of Unclaimed Property In Oklahoma Is Being Brought To The State Fair By Ken Miller

September 11th, 2012 | Shann

If you haven’t heard of Ken Miller and you ever were or are currently an Oklahoma resident then this is a name you don’t want to forget. Ken Miller is the current Oklahoma State Treasurer and is keeping a tradition that started 12 years ago at the state fair. Oklahoma’s state treasury decided to put together and host a booth at their local state fairs in order to try and alert Oklahoma residents of over 5 million dollars in unclaimed property and money. Oklahoma took the initiative to start running these booths over a decade ago to try and counteract their continuously growing unclaimed property issue with their “Pot of Gold” booth.

 

With Oklahoma’s State Fair starting this Thursday, September 13th, 2012, Ken Miller has decided to keep this tradition running by not only hosting a booth this year but by bringing a list of over 600,000 Oklahoma residents that are owed unclaimed money and property. Over the last 12 years the “Pot of Gold” booth has helped over 11,000 individuals claim and receive over 5 million bucks in Oklahoma unclaimed property and money. This has proven to be a huge accomplishment felt not only by Oklahoma state residents and the State Treasury but also by Ken Miller himself, stating, “”Oklahoma’s economy would get a big shot in the arm if we were able to reunite 600,000 state residents with $350 million. If you go to the fair this year, you need to stop by our booth to see if we have any of your money. Remember, too, that our service is free.”

 

Ken Miller realizes that by placing these unclaimed funds with the original owners he will not only help solve Oklahoma’s unclaimed property and money problem but in turn it will help give their economy a little boost. State fairs across the country have been hosting booths at their own fairs as well but with 570 Oklahoma residents claiming back almost $400,000 you can clearly see that the Oklahoma State Treasury’s efforts are really “paying” off.

 

People are always surprised when they find out they are entitled to unclaimed property and money. Most of them don’t even realize why they are owed these funds in the first place. It is actually very interesting how many people leave behind old bank accounts or forget about things like security or utility deposits from their last rental. Sometimes individuals even forget they have taxes due to them or might have money coming back to them from an escrow account on their new home. Other things may occur that will lead to unclaimed property and money like changing life insurance or even auto insurance policies. With so many reasons unclaimed property and money exists it seems strange that more people are not aware of all the different ways to track down and claim the money that is rightfully theirs.

 

The best part about learning how to find unclaimed property and money is that you don’t have to wait around for your annual state fair to host their own “Pot of Gold” type booth. You can simply check out a site like www.FindUnclaimedMoney.com and use their free search engine to cross reference state treasury databases across the country and see if any unclaimed property and money is due to you today.

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Unclaimed Property Might Be A Simple Search Away

July 13th, 2012 | admin

Did you know that, right now, millions of Americans have unclaimed property out there waiting to be claimed? This unclaimed property can include land, houses, valuables, stocks and bonds and much more. Where did all this unclaimed property come from and why don’t these Americans claim the unclaimed property if they know it’s out there? That’s the thing, with out an unclaimed property search many Americans don’t know this unclaimed property exists and with more being discovered every day, it’s starting to become a real problem.

The Growing Unclaimed Property Problem

Unclaimed property can come from a variety of places. It can come from abandoned safe deposit boxes and storage units, foreclosed homes and lots more. Instead of this property just going to the dump, it is held until the rightful owners claim it.

Then there are entire plots of land or even homes that are being held as unclaimed property. In these cases, a person’s loved one may have passed on and they’re the rightful heir to the property, only they don’t know it. Can you imagine how frustrating this must be for the state and federal governments? The officials at the state and federal level who are in charge of the unclaimed property problem are at their wits’ ends as they try to figure a way out t solve this unclaimed property problem once and for all.

If only all Americans knew that unclaimed property might be just a search away.

Searching For Unclaimed Property

Since the state and federal governments have no idea how to solve the growing unclaimed property problem, it is up to each American to conduct a free unclaimed property search. Luckily, all Americans have to do is search using their first and last name and they can find out if they have any unclaimed property or money available. If there is unclaimed property found, the person can then go about claiming it for themselves.

Claiming Unclaimed Property

If, after an unclaimed property search, you find that there is in fact unclaimed property available, you can easily claim it after you verify your identity. You will need to prove who you are, either by providing a copy of your social security number and/or driver’s license or passport, so that not just anyone can claim your unclaimed property for themselves. Once this process is completed, you can then claim the unclaimed property and the state and federal government will be that much closer to getting rid of the unclaimed property problem once and for all.

It only takes a few seconds and with most Americans having no idea that there is even unclaimed property out there, you might find a very nice surprise. What if, a few minutes from now, you found out that you were the owner of land, a home or a boat? What if you found out that you had your own island out there? Stranger things have happened? You might even find that you have unclaimed property out there in the form of a safe deposit box full of rare diamonds.

You won’t know until you conduct a free unclaimed property search for yourself. Do your part as an American and let’s rid this country of the unclaimed property problem once and for all. It takes only a few seconds, you don’t need to give anything other than your name and anyone can conduct the unclaimed property search as long as they have a computer or mobile device and an Internet connection.

What kind of unclaimed property do you have out there? There’s only one way to find out.

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