subject: What Happens To The Surplus Due When Property Is Lost To Tax Sale? [print this page] What happens to the surplus due when property is lost to tax sale? The answer: it depends on where you are. In about half of the states, that surplus is lost permanently to the government. In the rest of the states, the surplus is held for the owner to come in and collect. If he or she doesn't collect in time, it, too, will escheat to the government, with no recourse for the owner ever again.
There's a great opportunity here for anyone looking to bump up their real estate income. The surplus due when property is lost to tax sale is often accidentally left behind by the delinquent owner due to ignorance of the fact that they are entitled to it. As stated above, they have to claim it quickly, or it will be lost permanently. By finding records of the surplus, and then doing the necessary research to find the owners - who may have moved many years ago, and many times since - you can make some very nice finder's fees for your information. You'll be surprised how few former property owners have any clue where a large amount of money owed them could be coming from.
Due to an almost completely unknown loophole, tax sale surpluses (and mortgage foreclosure surpluses) are not subject to finder's fee limits. The standard finder's fee on a real estate overage is 30-50%, depending on what is involved in getting the claim paid out. Owners are more than happy to pay this on a contingent basis (they never have to pay, if you don't get the claim paid out), especially given that they would have lost everything otherwise. You'll find these owners to be a surprisingly grateful, reasonable bunch of people.
With the unfortunate foreclosure situation in the current economy, these funds are being created at an alarming rate. While there's not much you can do about that, you can help others avoid losing their money while making a nice income yourself by helping to collect these surplus funds. Not a bad way to make a living.
by: Maggie Dawson
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