The Unclaimed Property Division of the Nebraska State Treasurer’s Office will kick off its 2014 outreach schedule on July 4 at the Fourth of July celebration in Seward, Treasurer Don Stenberg said today.
“Unclaimed Property Division specialists will be available in Seward to help visitors search the Unclaimed Property database of 350,000 names and file claims. The process is easy and free,” Treasurer Stenberg said. “I encourage Fourth of July visitors to stop by our booth and check to see if the Treasurer’s Office is holding money for them, their family members, or their businesses.”
The Treasurer’s Office’s booth will be in the craft show on the east side of the Seward County Courthouse during the Fourth of July celebration.
Following is the list of events where Unclaimed Property Division specialists will be available for the remainder of 2014 and early 2015:
Stenberg also urged Nebraskans who have filed claims and received money to spread the word to friends, family members, and associates. While the most common way people find out about unclaimed property is through the annual report published each spring in daily newspapers, the second most common way people learn about unclaimed property is through friends and family members.
“We rely on people who have found money through our service to tell others and help us find rightful owners. We are holding more than $135 million for Nebraskans, former Nebraskans, and heirs, and we are constantly receiving new properties,” Stenberg said.
In Seward County, the largest property in the Unclaimed Property database is $10,386 for a “benefit/claim payment” for a Utica man. The Treasurer’s Office also is holding almost $8,000 each for two Seward women. Those properties include stocks, dividends, and bonds. The total value of property being held for Seward County residents tops $200,000.
The largest properties statewide in the database include $437,525 for stock redemption for a business, Brookdale Crescent, at an unknown address; $228,157, death benefit, stock, and dividends, for a Douglas County man; $227,454, royalties, for a Douglas County company; $161,933, mutual funds, for a Madison County woman; and $154,681, court deposit, for a Webster County man.
So far in 2014, almost $5.8 million has been returned to rightful owners. That total represents more than 12,000 claims paid. Last year the Treasurer’s Office returned more than $11 million in unclaimed property, the largest amount returned to owners since 2009.
Unclaimed property consists of cash and other personal assets that are considered lost or abandoned when a financial institution, insurance company, government entity, or business cannot locate the owner after a specified period of time. The property then is turned over to State Treasurer’s Office where it is held indefinitely until an owner or heir provides proper documentation.
Among the most common forms of unclaimed property are dividends, dormant accounts, gift certificates, insurance payments, matured CDs, lost IRAs, wages, rebates, stock and mutual funds, utility deposits, and abandoned safe deposit boxes. Unclaimed property does not include land, real estate, vehicles, or tax refunds.
In addition to visiting the Treasurer’s booth in Seward and other outreach events, Nebraskans and former Nebraskans can search for unclaimed property any time using the following methods:
