Unclaimed Money Can Help Eliminate Debt

Many people are captivated by the idea of "free money". Whether it's winning the lottery, inheriting millions from a mysterious relative or finding buried treasure in your back yard the thought of instant riches has captivated the imagination of thousands. However, reality soon sets in and you realize that there is no such thing as free money. Or is there? Currently balances totaling tens of billions of dollars are being held as unclaimed funds by individual US states. It's highly unlikely that you're going to get rich from any of these funds, but your odds of laying claim to a small portion is better than you might think.

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1 out of 8 people have unknown funds just waiting to be claimed. Often these are funds that people have forgotten about or that have become lost during a move. (i.e. information is sent to an old address) Once received these funds can be used to pay down debt, starts a savings fun, or anything else you might wish.

• Bank account balances
• Stocks
• Benefits
• Un-cashed checks
• Life insurance
• AND MORE

• Hire a service to search for you. The fees for such a service range from a fairly inexpensive fee to a percentage of whatever you recover.

• Do the search yourself. There are numerous websites available that offer free searches. Although a national database does not exist, individual states have their own databases which contain listings of unclaimed assets. All you need to start is your name and the state you would like to check. It is a good idea to research each state where you have lived. An explanation of how to proceed will be given if you locate any missing funds.

• Internet searches can also be conducted on behalf of relatives. You simply need to input their names and the state you would like to search. If any funds turn up you're sure to have fun passing along the good news.

It's not everyday that you have the chance to obtain free money but here is your opportunity to do so. Although unclaimed money is not technically free because at some point you earned it, none the less, it's money that you were never expecting to see. The only hard part of this whole process is deciding what to do with any money that you may recover. It just may be the perfect opportunity to pay off the credit cards or eliminate some other lingering debt. Enjoy!

(1) http://www.greedyfools.com/articles/4?f_archive=212

Mark Carney is a professional consultant with First American Debt Consolidation and Loans, a debt consolidation service specializing in financial education, credit counseling, and debt management services nationwide.