Tomorrow, February 1, is National Unclaimed Property Day and State Treasurer Roby Smith says his office has plenty of it.
“We have $587 million that we have to return to Iowans,” Smith says.
Banks and businesses that lose contact with the owner of financial assets turn that unclaimed property to the state treasurer’s office. It includes money in inactive bank accounts, uncashed checks, misplaced stocks and bonds — even insurance payouts that didn’t make it to the right person. There’s a website where you can check to see if you might have unclaimed property in Smith’s office.
“We tell people it’s fast, it’s free, it’s easy. You just go to GreatIowaTreasureHunt.com. We encourage them to do it once a year…They can do it around tax season,” Smith says. “We’re always receiving more money in. We just want to get it back to the rightful owners.”
Unclaimed safety deposit boxes are also turned over to Smith’s office. According to the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, one in every seven Americans has unclaimed property sitting in a state treasurer’s office – and that’s better odds than winning the lottery. During the last fiscal year — which ended June 30, 2024 — state treasurers around the country returned nearly $.4.5 billion in unclaimed property to its rightful owner.