Do You Have Unclaimed Property?
(AUSTIN) — Have you ever checked to see if you have unclaimed property? Maybe you forgot about that bank account you had in college or your late Aunt’s safe deposit box. The Texas Comptroller’s office approved and paid $285 million in unclaimed property claims during the past fiscal year, Comptroller Glenn Hegar announced today.
“I am proud to have returned nearly $2 billion dollars to Texans since becoming Comptroller, and we are continually looking for new ways to return even more,” Hegar said. “This is a testament to the hardworking folks in our Unclaimed Property Division. I encourage everyone to visit ClaimItTexas.org to see if the state is holding some of their unclaimed property.”
The Comptroller’s office has returned more than $3 billion in unclaimed property to rightful owners since Texas’ unclaimed property program began in 1962. The state is currently holding more than $6 billion in cash and other valuables through the program.
The $285 million in unclaimed property returned in fiscal 2021 represents more than 538,000 properties. These belongings include things such as forgotten utility deposits or other refunds, insurance proceeds, payroll checks, cashier’s checks, dividends, mineral royalties, dormant bank accounts and abandoned safe-deposit box contents. Businesses generally turn property over to the unclaimed property program after it has been considered dormant for one to five years.
There is generally no statute of limitations for unclaimed property the state holds, which means there’s no time limit for owners to file a claim — they can do so at any time.
For more information about the unclaimed property program, or to search for unclaimed property and begin the claims process, visit the Comptroller’s unclaimed property website, ClaimItTexas.org, or call 800-321-2274 (CASH).
