Eureka "I Found $"!

For the past week I had been squeezing the life out of my stress-relief toy (Floyd) trying to come up with a blog that was straight out helpful. I wanted to wax poetic about something that could put us all on the same playing field for even just a moment.

Well, beating up on Floyd gave me no inspiration whatsoever. So, my next trick was a pleasant relaxing hot bath. There it happened. Akin to Archimedes' enlightenment https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eureka_(word)

I sprang from the tub with my own EUREKA (“I found it”) MOMENT!

I’ll blog about MONEY!!! Yeah, that’s the ticket. We all like money—don’t we?

So, here goes…

I have always been confused by certain common phrases about money, like…

• Do you want to make EXTRA MONEY?
  Who needs the descriptive “extra”. They had me at “make money”.
• “Show me the MONEY”.
  No thank you, I say “GIVE me the MONEY”.

• “Money is the root of all evil”
  A misquote which actually should be “…For the love of money is the root of all evil…” (…according to what translation you are reading)

• It takes Money to make Money
  Nahhhh… it takes a great idea and your actions to make it happen

• You need Money to run a successful business
  Maybe – but it does not have to be YOUR money. Businesses thrive and grow every day from OPM (Other People’s Money) and CUSTOMERS.
  Ah, how I enjoy talking about money. Earning money, Investing money, Winning money, and my all-time favorite pass time FINDING MONEY—and I don’t mind sharing what I know about WHERE to find money, because I know there is enough for everybody to go around.

IS THIS SOMETHING YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT?
I hope so… because here it is…

MISSING MONEY and UNCLAIMED PROPERTY

State Resources

In the United States (and in certain other countries), various assets that have been determined as “abandoned property” is required by law to be turned over to the various states’ Department of Revenue. Abandoned or unclaimed property comes from many sources

• Banks and Credit Unions
• Businesses
• Court actions (bail, corrective actions, etc.)
• Overpayments
• Utilities
• Insurances and
• Government Entities, just to name a few.

Unclaimed property can be (but is not limited to):

• Lost Cash
• Bank accounts
• Uncashed checks such as payroll, insurance payments or travelers checks;
• Utilities and/or phone company deposits
• Proceeds from class action lawsuits
• Safe deposit box contents
• Insurance premiums and inheritances
• Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc.
• Gift Certificates, Gift Cards, Money Orders

Federal Resources

The US government maintain financial databases separate and apart from our states. Unclaimed assets held by federal agencies may well include…

• Pensions
• FDIC closeouts / claims
• Class action lawsuits
• Tax refunds
• Savings Bonds
• Mortgage Insurance from government home loans
• Student loan overpayment
• Veteran Benefits and more

GIVE ME THE MONEY!!!

It is estimated that in 2014, unclaimed money being held by individual states exceeded $32,000,000,000. The federal government reported $60,000,000,000.

The government is not required to contact citizens, businesses or organizations so they depend upon us contacting them. Special databases exist to provide us information. Each state has their own Dept. of Unclaimed Property as does each federal agency which can be located on the following federal databases.

https://www.usa.gov/unclaimed-money (States and federal agencies)

http://www.irs.gov/uac/Does-the-IRS-Have-Money-Waiting-For-You%3F (Federal Taxes)

http://nupn.com/federal.htm (for International Unclaimed Property)

What and Who Should I be looking for?

The databases disclose PUBLIC INFORMATION and each state and government agency uses a different format. Generally, however, what information is visible for you to determine if the money (asset) may be yours… you can expect a file to look something like this…

The main thing to know is they will use the last name and address known to them during the particular transaction.

TIPS:

• Look up every name (maiden, married, adopted, et al) and even nicknames you have ever used.
• Look under every state you have ever lived in, gone to school, work, opened up bank accounts, etc. (Even if you paid fines or served jail time)
• If you hold a business license or have held one in the past, look up your business names
• Look for the names of your children, spouses, and relatives (even if they are deceased)
• Look up names of friends and even businesses you frequent

(NOTE: Certain states allow you to earn money independently as a FINDER / LOCATOR / INVESTIGATOR and be paid a percentage of what you find for other people / businesses by agreement. Each state varies on how much they allow and how your service is to be structured. (e. g., Washington State allows up to 5% of what you find, California allows up to 10%, etc.). All this information is provided on the Unclaimed Property website for each state.)

Be READY to Prove it is YOUR MONEY

To verify ownership of any property you find in your name… you may be asked for one or more of the following documents in proof:

• Name change document
• Birth certificate
• Verification of former address
• Original stock certificate
• Passport
• Business license
• Relationship to deceased
• Death certificate
• Verify business relationship
• Last Will & Testament
• Articles of Incorporation
• Business Authorization
• Guardianship or Power of Attorney
• Other miscellaneous documentation

C’MON… CAN I REALLY FIND MONEY?

Since the Unclaimed Money process went online (well over a decade now) I have recovered

• Over $12,800 for me (closed bank accounts, deposits, insurance premiums, retroactive payroll increases, and class action lawsuit plaintiff, closed accounts of a deceased spouse).
• Over $200,000 for family, friends, and businesses for which I was paid 5 - 10% under a FINDER’s Agreement.

With my existing home based business, whether I am building a website or editing content for a client, I run an “asset search” on them.

While working on content for one client’s website for a $500 fee… I found the state he lived in was holding $13,000 in his name. It turned out he had sold a business years before and thought he had closed out all contracts and bank accounts. Well, nope. A government contract was a slow pay (what else is new) and their payment came in after he had sold the business. Not being able to contact him after closing his accounts, the money forwarded his money to the State Dept. of Revenue until—TA DA! My EUREKA, I found it moment. My payment?… $1,300 from a very very happy client. (C’mon… wouldn’t you happily pay $1,300 to get to $11,700?)

It is such a rush when I find money for a client because they end up paying me with money they would never have had if they had not done business with me in the first place.

YES, you can FIND MONEY—if not your's maybe SOMEONE ELSE's who agrees to pay you for what you have found for them!

Hope you have found this blog of interest.