{"id":1101520,"date":"2019-02-22T16:04:00","date_gmt":"2019-02-22T16:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/?p=106793"},"modified":"2019-02-22T16:04:00","modified_gmt":"2019-02-22T16:04:00","slug":"there-are-billions-to-be-claimed-is-any-of-it-yours","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/?p=1101520","title":{"rendered":"There are Billions to Be Claimed\u2026 Is Any of It Yours?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>This post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/there-are-billions-to-be-claimed\/\">There are Billions to Be Claimed\u2026 Is Any of It Yours?<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/\">Daily Reckoning<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>State governments are sitting on boatloads of unclaimed dollars.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Right now Florida alone is holding $1 billion, Washington \u2026 $1.3 billion, Illinois \u2026 $2.9 billion, California \u2026 a whopping $9.3 billion, New York \u2026 a jaw dropping $14 billion. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>And the billions keep pouring in.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>According to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA), in FY 2015, $7.763 BILLION was collected.<\/p>\n<h2><b>Where the Money\u2019s Coming From<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n<p>When a rightful owner cannot be located after a year or longer, funds are turned over to the government.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>For instance, suppose you had a small savings account and moved to another state. But you forgot to give the bank your new address? Since the bank doesn\u2019t know where to send statements or tax information, it turns the money over to the state.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The same often happens with life insurance death benefits. The insurance company can\u2019t locate the beneficiaries, so the money eventually goes to the state.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Other cases when the owner cannot be found include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Trust distributions<\/li>\n<li>Tax refunds<\/li>\n<li>Contents in safe deposit boxes<\/li>\n<li>Tenant security deposits<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Annuities<\/li>\n<li>Old stocks<\/li>\n<li>Uncashed payroll checks <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>How to Find Your Share<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>Of the $7.763 billion cited above, $3.235 billion was returned to the rightful owners. That\u2019s because every U.S. state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have unclaimed property programs meant to find owners of lost and forgotten assets.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The unclaimed property law is sometimes referred to as the W.C. Fields Law, named after the legendary comic and actor who died in 1946. Afraid of being robbed while he worked in the vaudeville circuit, Fields opened bank accounts in around 700 places. After his death, his heirs spent years contacting banks around the country to track down his assets.<\/p>\n<p>Most states hold unclaimed financial assets until you are found. Tangibles, such as from a safe deposit box, might eventually be sold at auction and the proceeds held until you claim them.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The amounts are usually small, $100 or so. However, last year in Arizona someone claimed $2 million.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>You may have received a notice from a company offering to recover money that you didn\u2019t know was yours.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Many are legitimate businesses that charge a percentage of the amount recovered. Although some are scams expecting you to pay upfront and then don\u2019t deliver on promises. So be cautious before signing a contract.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>But if you\u2019re willing to do some legwork, you can search for unclaimed assets on your own. And in most cases, the state will return them to you at little or no cost.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Where to Start<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>The government doesn\u2019t have one central source to look for money that might be owed to you.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>So a good place to begin is with the NAUPA. You can search every state where you have lived on their <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.unclaimed.org\/\">free search engine<\/a><\/strong>. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/refunds\">Go to the IRS<\/a><\/strong>, too. They may be sitting on a refund you didn\u2019t even know about because they have an old address.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Have you ever had a credit union account? The <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncua.gov\/support-services\/unclaimed-deposits\">National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)<\/a><\/strong> could be holding funds for you.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Or are you about to retire and think you might be entitled to a small pension from a company you worked for decades ago? The problem is \u2026 you can\u2019t locate them. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbgc.gov\/search\/unclaimed-pensions\">Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation<\/a><\/strong> has over $300 million for more than 38,000 people who haven\u2019t claimed their pensions. The individual benefits range from 12 cents to almost $1 million.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Speaking of retirement money \u2026<\/p>\n<p>The Department of Labor (DOL) allows companies who are terminating defined contributions plans, like 401(k)s, to transfer accounts of $1,000 or less to state unclaimed property funds when they can\u2019t locate the owners.<\/p>\n<p>So if you think you may have had small qualified retirement plan that has been terminated, the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.askebsa.dol.gov\/AbandonedPlanSearch\/\">DOL will help you locate your money<\/a><\/strong>. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>To Prevent Losing Your Property\u2026<\/b><\/h2>\n<p>Property is generally lost because the company or financial institution can\u2019t find you. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>To prevent that:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Let banks, brokerage firms, insurance companies, and other financial institutions know when you move or have a change in marital status.<\/li>\n<li>Maintain accurate records that include account numbers, institutions\u2019 names and addresses.<\/li>\n<li>Have a qualified attorney prepare a estate plan that has the contact information for all beneficiaries. And review it annually and make changes as needed. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>I hope this helps you find out if any of the unclaimed assets are actually yours.<\/p>\n<p>To a richer life,<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"align-none\" src=\"https:\/\/duip7hn7nchpo.cloudfront.net\/signature-nilus-mattive.png\" alt=\"Nilus Mattive\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Nilus Mattive<br \/>\nEditor, <i>The Rich Life Roadmap<\/i><\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/there-are-billions-to-be-claimed\/\">There are Billions to Be Claimed\u2026 Is Any of It Yours?<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/\">Daily Reckoning<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/there-are-billions-to-be-claimed\/\">There are Billions to Be Claimed&hellip; Is Any of It Yours?<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/\">Daily Reckoning<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>When a rightful owner cannot be located after a year or longer, funds are turned over to the government. But if you&rsquo;re willing to do some legwork, you can search for unclaimed assets on your own. And in most cases, the state will return them to you at little or no cost.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/there-are-billions-to-be-claimed\/\">There are Billions to Be Claimed&hellip; Is Any of It Yours?<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/dailyreckoning.com\/\">Daily Reckoning<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":55,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[688,1618,366,1641,1642,1643,490,1644,1645,923],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1101520"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/55"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1101520"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1101520\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1101521,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1101520\/revisions\/1101521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1101520"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1101520"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juniorminingnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1101520"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}