Latest news with #unclaimedproperty
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Pennsylvanians to receive $9.2 million worth of checks; Here's why
(WHTM) – Thousands of Pennsylvanians will soon receive a piece of the $9.2 million worth of checks being sent by the State Treasury. The Pennsylvania Treasury says the second round of Pennsylvania Money Match checks are now arriving in the mail. These checks are funds that people who are owed up to $500 for unclaimed property, and recipients are being advised to cash them. More than 39,000 checks are being sent out in this second round, while an additional 40,000 letters notifying people of incoming checks will go out in August. 'It's exciting to see so many people getting money they didn't know they had. It's now important that people cash these checks,' said State Treasurer Stacy Garrity. 'We want everyone to know this is a real program and this is real money. Every dollar we return to Pennsylvania families is money they can use to buy groceries, fill up their cars with gas, or pay their rent or mortgage. This money belongs to them, not the state.' Unclaimed property includes dormant bank accounts, unclaimed checks, insurance policies, and tangible property that is currently being held by the State Treasury. You can check if you have unclaimed property on the State Treasury website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CNET
11-07-2025
- Business
- CNET
Your State May Be Sitting on a Stack of Cash That Belongs to You. Here's How To Check for Unclaimed Property
Your state may have money or unclaimed property that's yours. Sarah Tew/CNET You might have a stack of cash that your state is holding onto, waiting for you to claim it. Your closed accounts, insurance policies, refunds and more may be returned to an unused or closed account you had once before, and were eventually sent to the state for safekeeping. These types of funds are called unclaimed property, and a quick search can tell you if you have money waiting for you. According to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, the average unclaimed property is worth $1,154 and one in seven people has something waiting for them. There's a process to receive your unclaimed property, but it might not be nearly as difficult as you might think. In fact, every state has a dedicated website for you to search for unclaimed property. Below, we'll show you how to find unclaimed property that may belong to you and how to claim it. How do I search for unclaimed money or property in my state? You can learn whether a state is holding property for you using a property search tool from from National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. Its map of the US provides links to every state's website for unclaimed property. It also includes links to property search tools for Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Washington, DC, and some Canadian provinces. Be sure to check each state, territory or district you've lived in to see if you have something to claim. And if you searched a while ago and didn't find anything, search again. "If you have searched for your name before and not found any unclaimed property, or found property in your name and claimed it, be sure to check back again as new properties are reported to the state annually," California State Controller Malia Cohen told CNET. In most cases, you'll be taken to a page where you can search directly for unclaimed property; in others, you may need to click through from a home page to the unclaimed property search page. You will usually only have to provide your last name to search for property, although adding your first name, location or address will help narrow the search. Two other free services -- and FindMyMoney -- offer built-in searches on their websites, but not for every state. lets you search 41 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Alberta, Canada, while FindMyMoney provides its own search tool for 28 states and Washington, DC. FindMyMoney links out to the state search engines for the other 23 states. Some states, such as Ohio, work with to let people search for property and file claims. Once the claim is filed with the state handles the communication, verification and eventual payment of the claim. I have unclaimed property that belongs to me. How do I claim it? There's no federal system for claiming your property -- the process will vary from state to state. And you do not need to be currently living in a state to claim your property, so check other places you've lived. Most states use a system similar to an online shopping service, where you add a property to claim, and then "check out" by providing information such as your current address and Social Security number to verify your identity and prove you're the rightful owner of the property. Once you file your claim, the state may contact you by email for any further information it needs to process the claim. Some states will allow you to provide supporting documentation online, while others require it to be filed by mail. Your state may keep a small amount -- in Kentucky, it's $1 for any property over $10 -- as a holding fee. Most states do not have a deadline for claiming property, though some may auction it off after a set period of time. If so, you will still usually have the right to claim its value from the state. How long does it take to get my money or property back? As with the process for claiming, the timing for receiving your property will vary from state to state. The California state controller, for example, says that simple claims involving cash can be resolved in 30 to 60 days. More complicated claims involving multiple heirs or businesses may take up to 180 days. Why would a state be holding onto my property anyway? After a specific "dormancy period" -- usually one to three years -- businesses will send money and property to state-run unclaimed property offices when they can't locate the owner. The state will then hold these items until their owner claims them. The property can be money in a savings or checking account, stocks, annuities, life insurance policies or the contents of safe deposit boxes, among many possible items. New York state currently has a whopping $18.4 billion in unclaimed property, and the state comptroller's office says it pays out $1.5 million per day. For more, find out why more people are applying for Social Security earlier.
CBS News
27-06-2025
- Business
- CBS News
More than $9 million worth of checks are hitting Pennsylvanians' mailboxes. The state says to cash them.
More than $9 million worth of checks are hitting Pennsylvanians' mailboxes, and the state treasurer is encouraging people to cash them. The Pennsylvania Treasury says nearly 40,000 checks totaling $9.2 million have gone out to people through the Money Match program. "It's exciting to see so many people getting money they didn't know they had," Treasurer Stacy Garrity said in a press release. "It's now important that people cash these checks. We want everyone to know this is a real program and this is real money. Every dollar we return to Pennsylvania families is money they can use to buy groceries, fill up their cars with gas, or pay their rent or mortgage. This money belongs to them, not the state." How do I get a Money Match check? If one of these checks are heading your way, you should already know. The Treasury sent notification letters to Pennsylvanians in early May telling them that unclaimed property would automatically be returned to them. The Pennsylvania Money Match program allows the Treasury to automatically return single-owner properties valued at up to $500 after a thorough identification and verification program. Under the program, checks will be sent quarterly. The Treasury says the next batch, which includes about 40,000 letters, will go out in August. The Treasury plans to return $30 million this year. Unclaimed property includes things like dormant bank accounts, uncashed checks, forgotten stocks and insurance policies. It also covers tangible items like the contents of abandoned safe deposit boxes. The Treasury says more than one in 10 Pennsylvanians has unclaimed property, and the average claim is worth more than $1,000. You can find out if you're owed unclaimed property by searching online. Legislation looks to expand program The Money Match program was signed into law by Gov. Josh Shapiro last year. The Treasury says there's movement in both chambers of the General Assembly to increase the threshold for Money Match, allowing more unclaimed property to be automatically returned. Right now, the program doesn't apply to claims for properties valued above $500 or those that have multiple owners or other complexities. Those people still need to file a claim online and provide the required documentation.
CBS News
07-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Pennsylvania Treasurer mailing 40,000 "Money Match" letters to residents this week
Over 40,000 Pennsylvania residents will find out this week if they are owed unclaimed money or property through the "Money Match" program, and will likely start receiving checks in June, Treasurer Stacy Garrity announced Wednesday. The Money Match program allows the state treasury to automatically return property valued up to $500 to the rightful single owner after steps are taken to verify their identity. "If you receive a Money Match letter, read it and keep it," Garrity said in a news release. "About 45 days later, your unclaimed property will arrive in the form of a check from the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, so make sure you cash the check!" Forty-five days from May 8 would be June 22, 2025. This is the second batch of checks sent out through the program. In the first, about 8,000 checks totaling nearly $2 million went to residents. Prior to last year, residents had to seek out unclaimed property for themselves. But then the Pennsylvania Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 24, which allows for the automatic return of some unclaimed funds. "I saw some other states were doing it and I'm like, well, why aren't we doing this?" Garrity told CBS News Philadelphia's Jim Donovan in March. On Thursday, Garrity and fellow Republican state representatives and senators will gather to return $13,000 in unclaimed property to the Bucks County Sheriff's Office. What is unclaimed property and how can I find it in Pennsylvania? Unclaimed property could be money from dormant bank accounts or uncashed checks, forgotten stocks and insurance policies, or even physical property like the contents of abandoned safe deposit boxes. There is more than $5 billion in unclaimed property being held by the Treasury, with the average claim valued at more than $1,000. Money Match will automatically send out money and property valued at $500 or less and with a single owner. But if the property has multiple owners or is valued higher, you will still need to file a claim. To see if you're owed unclaimed property in Pennsylvania, visit the Pennsylvania Treasury's website. contributed to this report.
