subject: The Law Regarding Unclaimed Property Finders Fees [print this page] If you're looking into becoming a money finder, one of the first things you need to understand is the law regarding unclaimed property finders fees. In most cases, you can't just charge whatever you want - although there are a few notable exceptions.
Money that is held by the state is usually kept by an agency called the Division of Unclaimed Property, Unclaimed Funds Division, Bureau of Abandoned Property, something like that. This is where things like abandoned bank accounts, forgotten stock dividends, and unclaimed security deposits and utility deposits go. The law regarding unclaimed property finders fees for these types of funds varies by state, but is usually limited to around 10%. Some states have other requirements as well, such as that you register with the state, or you have to be a private investigator.
The law regarding unclaimed finders fees is different, though, when it comes to certain types of funds - namely, real estate created unclaimed funds. These can come from things like tax foreclosure sale, mortgage foreclosure sale, or the sale of properties that were missed in probate (death/heir) cases. Since these funds are not held at the state level, the state law regarding unclaimed finder fees doesn't generally apply. Most states have few restrictions on what a finder can charge to help recover these funds.
This means you can legally charge 30-50% for your information - and surprisingly, there are a lot of claimants out there that have no clue they are owed unclaimed property funds. What generally happens is more is bid for a property at tax or mortgage foreclosure auction that was owed back to the government or bank, and that money is due the owners. We're talking funds in the five to six figures.
Unfortunately for the owners, these funds escheat quickly to the state if not claimed. Money finders are desperately needed in this arena, with the billions of dollars from foreclosures being created these days. The best part? You can run this business entirely from home - anywhere in the world. All aspects of the business are performed remotely.
