Chasing the Big Guys

The other day I was speaking with my buddy from college who's name is Steve and we got on the subject of the weak economy and the various bailout scenarios. This lead back to a discussion of my unclaimed property hobby. I explained my concept that I believe the federal government should lead the effort to first liquidate the unclaimed property assets back into the hands of the real property owners and use this as a first step to stimulating the economy. I told him that the fed should also provide some type of compensating incentive to the states to get them to want to distribute the property. My idea was that the federal government should reimburse the states either a percentage or a dollar for dollar reimbursement for every dollar distributed. To me this is a no brainer for the states. If you take a simple example like a $300 distribution, if the state retains possession they get the interest which at a low interest rate like 1/2% would amount to $1.50 plus the use of the funds. Under my scenario, the state would receive the funds without the liability they would continue to receive the interest and if the property owner just spent half of the distribution they would receive an additional $9.00 (based on 6% sales tax) which means the impact would be $300+$1.50+$9.00=310.50 for the effort to distribute $300. I am not addressing any impact regarding income taxes or any of the local economic multipliers.

Steve was very intrigued and seemed a bit excited and I felt a little rejuvenated by his enthusiasm so I began to author emails to some high profile senators who I felt would have an interest locally as well as nationally to help provide a creative solution to the economic situation we are in. The list was carefully selected based on my perception of the senators dedication to public service to their states as well as the American people. I also took into account their national profile. The list of senators included John McCain (R-AZ), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Orin Hatch (R-UT), Joe Leiberman (IND-CT), Christopher Dodd (D-CT), Arlene Specter (R-PA) and Joe Biden (D-DE). I am aware that a number of the senators will be part of the new administration but I felt it wouldn't hurt to get this subject in front of them before they move into their new positions. My hope is that my contact will get in the hands of one of these senators and maybe spark some type of serious discussion.

I really feel this is an untapped yet cost effect funding source that the federal government should take advantage of. If this makes sense to you, please write to your local senators and ask them to consider this alternative. The more people write the more they have to listen.

Thanks and have a great Thanksgiving!!

Bailout? Liquidate Unclaimed Property First!

I recently wrote to the Secretary of the Treasury, Henry M. Paulson, for the second time.

I wanted to propose that a concerted effort be made to liquidate the unclaimed property rolls before providing any additional bailout/stimulus funds. It was my contention that by releasing those funds first that this would provide some stimulation to the economy. The second suggestion was to add an incentive for the states to also have a vested interest in liquidating the funds and that would entail a reciprocal dollar value be returned to the states for every dollar distributed. I felt this would double the impact of the one dollar distribution and that would get the local economies moving again.

I recognize that a project of this type would not be an easy undertaking but I believe that the impact of the federal government spending $30-$40 billion dollars to get $60-$80 billion dollars of economic impact seems like a pretty reasonable way to get the economy jump started.

I hope that Secretary Paulson takes my suggestion seriously or that he at the very least passes my suggestion to the next administration because I think that there are enough funds to provide some relief during this very difficult time.

Thanks for listening!

Coworkers Family

Yesterday, I was sitting with two of my coworkers and we were discussing other business issues. While we were talking I asked one of my coworkers for his father's name. He provided the name and I plugged it in the NY state website but did not find any matches so we tried his mother both married and maiden names and still no hits. Finally after trying a number of his family members we received a match. It appeared to be a GHI related refund so I sent him a pdf version of the claim form. This morning I was wondering if maybe this claimant might not have funds in Florida because some of my co worker's family have moved their and so I checked and sure enough another hit. This seemed to be related to a premium refund on a policy with State Farm Auto Insurance. I contacted my coworker and told him about my new findings. He is going to contact his family member and will tell him the good news. I told my coworker that now he can play Santa Claus too.

I think this is a great time for this with the holidays approaching. I hope that my coworker helps teach others to search and maybe it will make some one's holiday season a little better.

Talk to you all later.

Why look?

A trend that I find objectionable is taking hold with the various states in the union and that is auctioning of property that is being held under the unclaimed property laws. I understand that the proceeds are to be held in perpetuity for the owner but if the item is a keepsake then the valued treasure is gone. I recognize that the states must deal with a large volume of property submissions but I truly believe that they do not make a concerted effort to find the rightful owners. As an amateur searcher who is only armed with a laptop, phone and printer, I have been able to identify and find a number of individuals and organizations with minimal effort. I cannot believe that the states with such powerful tools at their disposal such as the tax rolls and municipal employment records that they still claim difficulty in locating the property owners.

In a time when people are struggling to make ends meet and may have resources available that they may have lost touch with I think the states should do their best to locate the true property owners and liquidate as much of the unclaimed property rolls as possible. I take the view that before requesting additional stimulus funds and bailout provisions that we should make sure that we have a clear picture of the resources available to individuals and corporations.

If you share this view, please write to your state treasury departments and contact the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (naupa.org) and maybe we can start a grassroots movement that gets this property back in the hands of the rightful owners. This could be the difference between a good holiday season and a bad holiday season.

Please help because I am only one person working alone.

Thanks!

IRS Refunds and Stimulus Checks

Hi Guys,

I have been ill so I wasn't able to create any postings so I apologize.

I thought about the purpose of this blog and realized that I have been focusing solely on abandoned property but I have not touched on how to research IRS refunds or your stimulus checks which were instituted this year.

I found an article on MSN.com that addressed this subject wonderfully. It was written by Kay Bell for Bankrate.com so I have included a copy of it below. If you would like to read the original article or research other information on the subject, the URL is http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Taxes/Advice/is-the-irs-holding-a-check-for-you.aspx.

" Is the IRS holding a check for you?

Between regular tax refunds and this year's stimulus rebates, the government has gotten back $266 million in undeliverable checks. Some of that money may be yours.

By Bankrate.com
If you're still waiting for your economic stimulus payment, it might be in one of the more than 383,000 pieces of mail returned to the Internal Revenue Service.

Those envelopes were undeliverable because they had bad addresses. Taxpayers have been left frustrated as the IRS tries to figure out how to get $266 million in tax rebate and regular tax refund checks to their rightful owners.

The good news is that it's easy to let the IRS know where to resend your rebate or refund check.

Deadline is approaching

But don't dally. If it's a rebate you're waiting for, you have only until Nov. 28 to claim your cash.

Most of the money that didn't make it to taxpayers is from returned rebate checks. They total $163 million of the $168 billion sent out, with an average rebate of $583.

The regular refunds are fewer, accounting for $103 million, but the average returned refund check is $988.

Your unclaimed check might be less, but then again, it might be more. And any amount of money would be nice, especially in these tight economic times and with the holidays approaching.

This year's number of returned tax checks is more than three times the number marked undeliverable last year. That increase is thanks to the economic stimulus payments, which were sent to taxpayers who met certain income requirements.

All these rebate-eligible filers had to do was file a 2007 tax return. But in 279,000 cases, there were problems with the addresses on the filers' 1040 forms.

In many cases, taxpayers moved after filing their returns and didn't let the IRS know their new addresses. In some cases, though, the addresses on the forms were illegible, so they bounced back to Uncle Sam.

The same problems showed up on an additional 104,000 or so returns filed by taxpayers who are due regular tax refunds.

Whatever the reason and whichever tax payment is involved, the IRS has money that could be yours.

"People across the country are missing tax refunds and stimulus checks. We want to get this money into the hands of taxpayers where it belongs," IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said. The tax chief added that as soon his staff gets the updated addresses, the checks will once again be on their way.

Getting that information to the IRS is relatively simple, especially if you use the online options provided by the agency.

How to get your money now

If it's a rebate check you're missing, head to the agency's "Where's My Stimulus Payment?" online tracking tool. There you can check the status of your stimulus check and receive instructions on how to update your address. If you prefer, you can do the same by calling the IRS at 1-866-234-2942.

Just make sure you go online or make the call by Nov. 28.

By law, the rebate checks must be sent out by Dec. 31, so the IRS has established the late-November address-change cutoff date to ensure it can update its records and meet the final mailing deadline.

It's easy to make tax mistakes -- the kind that result in smaller refunds or those that could get you in trouble with the IRS. Here's how to correct them.

If it's a regular refund you're awaiting, check the IRS' popular "Where's My Refund?" money tracker. You'll need your Social Security number, filing status and the amount of the refund shown on your 2007 return.

The online search option then will provide the status of your refund and, in some cases, provide instructions on how to resolve delivery problems. You'll also be given instructions on how to update your address.

Again, you can check on your refund and update your personal information by calling the IRS, this time at 1-800-829-1954.

If you can afford to wait for your refund money or are just too busy right now to be bothered with tracking down missing tax money, you can wait. Your unclaimed tax refund check will find you next filing season when you send in your 2008 return with your current, correct address.

The catch with rebate checks

With a rebate check, however, such procrastination could be costly. You must meet the Nov. 28 address update deadline to get your money this year.

True, if you don't get the correct mailing information into the IRS by then, you'll get another chance in 2008 at a stimulus payment.

But next year the stimulus payment will be in the form of a credit on your tax return, not a separate check like the ones sent out this year.

And changes in your income and tax situation this year could affect your stimulus amount.

For example, if you have a child who qualified on your 2007 return for the child tax credit, you were eligible for an extra $300. However, if that child in 2008 does not meet the tax credit requirements, you won't get that added economic stimulus money on the return you file next year.

Also, keep in mind that although the stimulus payment was distributed in 2007 as a check, it is actually a tax credit. That means any amount of stimulus for which you qualify on a 2008 return will be accounted for against your tax liability.

This means, for example, if you qualify for a $600 economic stimulus amount on your 2008 return and owe $1,000 in taxes, that $600 will be used to reduce your tax bill. You will not get the $600 as a separate payment.

So if you haven't received your stimulus check yet, contact the IRS, either via the online rebate tracking tool or by phone, as soon as possible. And definitely do so by the Nov. 28 deadline. That's the only way you'll get your rebate money this year.

This article was reported and written by Kay Bell for Bankrate.com.

Published Nov. 10, 2008 "

Thank you Miss Bell for addressing this subject and for sharing this information with us.

Talk to you again soon!