You can charge 10% as an Alabama Unclaimed money finder!
In the past five years, over $125 million dollars in unclaimed money was returned to its rightful owners or their heirs in Alabama. $125 million dollars sound like a lot, but that breaks down to $25 million per year.
With almost half a billion dollars being held by the state that is only about 5% of what is actually owed.
Obviously the state cannot do it all themselves.
That is where unclaimed money finders come in. Unclaimed money finders locate people owed money by the State and help reunite them with their unclaimed money.
These people aren’t difficult to find. They’re not hiding, they’re not criminals, they are just normal people like you and me that don’t know that they have money being held for them.
Once you help them get their money back, you can charge them a commission which is usually a percentage of what they have gotten back. In Alabama, you can charge a 10% fee of any money that you get back.
If you want to become an Alabama unclaimed money finder, they make it pretty easy for you. There is only one paragraph dedicated to it in their Unclaimed Property Act documentation (see below):
Section 35-12-93: Agreement to Locate Property
“An agreement by the owner with the primary purpose of locating, delivering, recovering or assisting in the recovery of property is enforceable only if the agreement is:
(a) An agreement by an owner, the primary purpose of which is to locate, deliver, recover, or assist in the recovery of property that is presumed abandoned, is void and unenforceable if it was entered into during the period commencing on the date the property was presumed abandoned and extending to a time that is 24 months after the date the property is paid or delivered to the Treasurer. This subsection does not apply to an owner’s agreement with an attorney to file a claim as to identified property or contest the Treasurer’s denial of a claim.
(b) An agreement by an owner, the primary purpose of which is to locate, deliver, recover, or assist in the recovery of property, is enforceable only if the agreement is in writing, clearly sets forth the nature of the property and the services to be rendered, states that the property is in custody of the State of Alabama Treasurer’s Office, is signed by the apparent owner, states the compensation fee percentage of the value of the amount to be claimed, and states any other compensation to be deducted.
(c) If an agreement covered by this section applies to mineral proceeds and the agreement contains a provision to pay compensation that includes a portion of the underlying minerals or any mineral proceeds not then presumed abandoned, the provision is void and unenforceable.
(d) Total compensation in an agreement covered by this section may not exceed 10 percent of the value of the amount claimed.
(e) This section does not preclude an owner from asserting that an agreement covered by this section is invalid on grounds other than unconscionable compensation. It is the sole responsibility of the owner to enforce this section.
(Act 2004-440, p. 755, §1; Act 2013-91, p. 192, §
To view the whole Alabama Unclaimed Money summary click here: Alabama Unclaimed Property Act
Here are some facts regarding Alabama unclaimed money:
- There are currently over 3.4 million properties currently available to be claimed worth over $465 million.
- Since 1996, residents of Jefferson County, Alabama alone have received payments of over $32 million from 61,785 claims.
- The average amount paid per claim for 2018-2019 was $1,664.20.
- The average amount paid per claim since 1996 is $508.53.
The below question is taken from the Alabama unclaimed money website:
I received information from a company that said that they could help me get my property for a fee. Should I use them to help me file a claim?
Answer: No. These companies can not do anything for you that you can not do on your own for free. There is no charge for the services that the Treasurer’s Office provides. Our staff will be happy to assist you with your search and claim for free.
That’s all well and good if you know you have money or you know where to look for it, but what about the millions of people that don’t know they have unclaimed money waiting for them?
Click here if you are interested in becoming an Alabama unclaimed money finder.
How do you get started working?
Read the Guide so you learn the business. Get a list for the state(s) you want to work in. We give you a couple to get you started. Register a business, set up a bank account.
This info is great! My only question pertains to the states that issue checks to finders. I’m aware that CA does, but how else would one find the information for each individual state?
You can start here to get an idea, https://moneyfinderbiz.com/unclaimed-money-finder-lists/, and go to the individual states information on this site or in the Guide. If you still are not sure, you can contact the states directly and ask them.
I am interested in learning the business.
where do i go to become a investigator in alabama
I’m interested in becoming a money finder as a business venture! I bought the Ultimate Guide to unclaimed funds finder business in 2019, but have not been able to use it. I moved to another state and my things were in storage.
Barbara,
I just sent you another download link.
I hope that helps. If you have any issues with it, please let me know.
Thank you,
Mark
Barbara,
Have you been successful with this???
I have been researching multiple states. Can I clarify, if you do not say that there is a license required, does that mean by default that there is no license required??
Elaina,
At the bottom of http://moneyfinderbiz.com/unclaimed-money-finder-lists/ there is a spreadsheet listing the states that require a license. Laws change though and I always say to check with the state directly just to make sure you have the most up to date information.