MONEY FOR THE MASSES

by Valerie Doty

Do you read a lot of mystery novels? Is watching True Crime your guilty pleasure? Do you love solving real life mysteries? Me, too! I have been a software developer most of my life and finding a software bug is like solving a mystery. For those unfamiliar, finding a bug is like someone handing you a 20-book encyclopedia (we’re all old enough to remember the encyclopedia taking an entire shelf in the library) and telling you to find the typo and fix it. This background has led me to one of my current hobbies/volunteer work of connecting money in the State of Texas Unclaimed Property with its rightful owners.

How I got started with this hobby. I had learned about unclaimed property when I worked for a savings and loan back in the 1970s, but I never really thought about it much even when the news did little stories about checking to see if you had money there. Then, life happened. In 2017, I found myself in a bad way. I had been scammed by someone I had known for 10 years and I was having trouble finding a job. I couldn’t even get WalMart to hire me. So I had a lot of time on my hands and decided to unpack some boxes of things belonging to my Mom - she passed in 2001. I found a lockbox key. I searched on the key’s bank name and it no longer existed, possibly bought out by Wells Fargo. My Mom had been living in Illinois when she had the key and coincidentally, my high school reunion was scheduled for that summer in Illinois. I decided to take the lockbox key with me when I traveled to Illinois for my reunion. While I was in town, I took the key to the Wells Fargo closest to Mom’s last apartment before she moved to Reno. Fortunately, there were 2 ladies who had been with the bank a long time and knew the key would not have fit any location they knew about over the years. They went on to explain that didn’t matter because lockboxes are only kept for about a year if you stop paying the rent. Then the boxes are opened and the contents are sent to the state’s Unclaimed Property. Since it had been 16 years, the lockbox key was useless. I needed to search Unclaimed Property.

When my reunion was over and I flew back to Texas, I began my search. There was nothing on the Illinois Unclaimed Property website. However, I did find money for several other family members. I wasn’t surprised that there was nothing for my Mom. She was very good with money and keeping track of things. I believe she emptied the lockbox before she moved to Nevada and forgot to return one of the keys. I also checked the Nevada Unclaimed Property website and found some money from a forgotten bank account she had opened for one of my nephews. All of this inspired me to search for money for other family members and the next thing I knew, I was hooked. I loved finding money for people. From there, I started selecting random entries on the unclaimed property website to research families and let them know they had money they could claim from the State Treasury for free. I like doing Texas the most, because they display the full dollar amount. Some states just display over/under $100.00 or something like that. I choose the largest dollar amounts or the names with the most entries and try to find the families. Then I handwrite them a personal note or message them on Facebook to give them instructions on how to search for and claim the money. I never send a link because that’s what scammers do and I don’t want anyone to think I’m a scammer, even though they probably do anyway. I love solving these mysteries so much, I have continued to reunite families with money in my spare time even though I have a job now and am getting my life back together.

Here’s how it works. When you move or pass away and a company owes you money, like a last paycheck, utility deposit, mineral royalties, insurance payouts, etc., that company doesn’t get to keep the money. They are supposed to contact you at your last known address and if you don’t respond (maybe because you’re gone and left no forwarding address) they should send the money to the state treasury’s unclaimed property, also called escheat property. You should search for unclaimed property in every state you have lived in. Also check for common misspellings of your name as typos happen a lot. I search on last name only, so I can see if any family members have money in unclaimed property. It is free to claim your money. However, some of the paperwork may seem daunting.

There can be some obstacles to claiming your money. Banks and other companies don’t keep records like they used to. I found money for a friend. She had forgotten about a Christmas Club account at a bank. When she filled out the paperwork to claim the money, she was told they needed verification from the bank that she was THE Jane Doe who owned the money. When she contacted the bank, she was told they don’t keep records and social security numbers that far back and couldn’t verify. Her name is pretty unique but that doesn’t matter; the state still needs verification. I finally emailed the Texas Treasury Department and asked them what to do. Afterall, what good is holding your money for you if you can’t claim it? A research specialist from the Unclaimed Property division responded to my email with a phone number for my friend to call and get assistance directly from their department.