When you think of lost money, what usually springs to mind are the countless times in your life you lost bills and coins without noticing. If you added them up together, you just might have a small fortune on your hands.
There is another concept of lost money though. One of out ten Americans have unclaimed property or lost money being held in escrow in federal and state accounts. Unclaimed property has reached a total of forty five billion dollars in these accounts while public and private corporate accounts contain five hundred billion dollars.
How could that be so? People acquire wealth without their knowledge when a relative or an old friend leaves behind something for them in their will. Sometimes, in the process of moving about, the people for whom the bequests are for cannot be found. These bequests are then put into escrow in a state or federal account acting as caretaker of the property until such property is claimed. If, for a certain number of years, the property is not claimed, it reverts to the government. This is somewhat similar for those escrowed funds incorporate accounts.
What it all adds up to is that 7 out of 10 Americans do not know that they inherited something recently, and will probably go about the rest of their lives without even knowing about it. In the process of doing so, the government or corporation becomes richer.
Just what exactly can you do to find out if you have lost money? Pay attention to your past. Somewhere, sometime in the past, there might have been someone who promised to give you something and then passed away without another word. You might have several relatives who died with no children to pass on their wealth. Usually, an aunt or an uncle who was, at one time, your second parent or special friend with whom you eventually lost touch will have something for you.
The internet contains a lot of sites about lost money and how to go about trying to claim them. These sites also contain warnings and instructions for avoiding scams.
Why not try your luck? After all is said and done, you just might be able to afford treating me to a pizza. |
