UNCLAIMED PROPERTY - HIDDEN FAMILY ASSETS

Every state is bursting at the seams with unclaimed property just waiting for its rightful heir. Lost or abandoned family assets can be found in the form of forgotten Stocks, Bonds, Insurance Benefits, Cash, Savings Accounts, Checking Accounts and so on. The State of Alabama alone has over $400 million dollars to be claimed. And don’t forget about Tangible Property such as the contents of a safety deposit box or any other safekeeping repository.

Each state has an unclaimed property division that you can use, free of charge to begin your search. Think of all the states that you or your relatives have lived in and use this as your starting point. If you are lucky enough to have had someone in your family work on a genealogy family tree you could use this to enhance your search for more hidden assets from your descendents. To the right you will find the links covering the fifty states. You will notice that some of the states have banned together and will be using missingmoney.com to search specific states. Other states have set up their own search page.

Vital Records

Records of marriages, divorces, births and deaths will be important in establishing legal rights to the unclaimed money. Records can be located in various local county offices or your states Vital Statistics Office. Remember, you will have to establish your identity as well.

Other Search Ideas

There are numerous areas other than your states Unclaimed Property Office to search for hidden assets. But be warned, you will need to do some digging and provide proper documentation.

1. Was your relative due a state income tax return that was never collected?

2. Investigate to see whether your distant relative had a life insurance policy that was over-looked.

3. Maybe you had a relative that was fatally injured in an automobile accident. Was a settlement paid out that was never collected?

4. Check to see if your relative was ever licensed with a state in a specific trade. Some professional groups sponsor group life insurances that may have gone unnoticed.

5. Was your relative a Public Employee or a Teacher? Check to see if they had a retirement fund.

6. Check to see if they were ever in a Union. Some Unions offer a group life insurance policy that was paid for by their employers.