Find and claim lost money for you and your loved ones in Florida

Do you or have you lived in FL? Have you moved in the past 10 years? Has your immediate family passed away in FL? Did you have a FL company that dissolved?

You could have money that was lost and is being held by Bureau of Unclaimed Property. Part of the Department of Financial Services, the Bureau holds billions of dollars that belong to the public. Their funds are kept in an interest bearing account that supports their income, services, and also the Department of Education.

The public has the right to get their money back. You can search for free so do not be fooled by those advertising companies that say they will search for you for a fee.

You can check to see if you have unclaimed funds at www.fltreasurehunt.org. The Bureau is very strict on distributing funds. They depend on their Statutes and the forms they provide. They require a copy of a valid picture ID for any claim. Most people know they have money in the State but do not know how to get the check. There are services called "registered locators" that specialize in finding the funds and claiming them. The State of FL will pay these locators directly and pay you the rest, so you dont have to pay out anyone!

When the funds in the State are for a deceased relative that you are beneficiary to, the State has strict regulations they adhere to. When the amount is over $5000.00, they require the estate be probated. Some of the locator services, otherwise known as "agents" will pay for the estate to be probated so you do not owe anything out of pocket. As long as you are the direct beneficiary, they will get the estate probated and make the claim so you simply sign some documents and get the check from the State when everything is completed. If the estate was already probated, they will order all the necessary documents from the court and death certificates. Basically the agent does all the work for you so you can sign a paper and get the check.

Another service an agent will provide is if the check is for you, in your name, but you no longer have any documents with that address on it. The agent has programs that can track your old addresses and this can be submitted in lieu of your own personal documents.

One of these registered locators is Thomas M Costello CPA. The website is www.cpa-costello.com. If you see that you have sufficient funds in the State you do not know how to claim yourself, they will be happy to provide their services. I happen to work for this company and we are registered with the Better Business Bureau and we take meticulous care to be thorough, expeditious, and secure with our documents.

I personally recommend seeing the money in the State for yourself first. Go ahead and try to make the claim, send in the documents. If you are unsuccessful with them, then contact our office so we may assist you.

•  1. Make Claim on State website-per their instructions (they walk you through it step by step)
•  2. Print the claim form
•  3. Mail it back to the State with proof of the "reported" address and a copy of your ID
•  4. Wait 30-90 days for your check

•  1. Make claim on State Website
•  2. Print the Claim Form
•  3. Go to Sunbiz.org
•  4. Print the page information on your Entity
•  5. Print the last annual report
•  6. Mail this altogether to the State

 These are harder more intricate claims to make. For an individual that has passed away, make the claim on their website and then try giving the State:

• Certified death certificate
• Copy of Birth Certificate
• ID
• Written statement of relation to decedent
• Will

If the amount is over $5000.00 and the estate was probated, give the State:

• Petition for Administration
• Will (if any)
• Petition for Discharge
• Order of Discharge

If the estate was NOT probated, it needs to be, or Florida will not disburse the funds.

If the company is not active, the State requires the same information as the active company (see above) PLUS the following:

• a bankruptcy search
• a copy of your current ID
• relation to the company, proving you are same individual as the last officer (having the same name is not sufficient)

Because these claims are more difficult, it is ideal to use an agent for their services to assist you in these types of claims.

GOOD LUCK!