RALEIGH — For the fourth year in a row, the Unclaimed Property Division of the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer has set a new record for returning unclaimed money to its legal owners.
State Treasurer Dale R. Folwell said that more than $115 million was returned in the fiscal year 2023–24, which was more than the previous high of $108.5 million.
It was the first time ever that $115 million in unclaimed property was sent out, and over $1.3 billion is still sitting at nccash.com, Folwell told media on his monthly call.
For the news, Folwell said, “We can’t give this money away fast enough.”
Folwell said that Deputy Treasurer Allen Martin’s work was the reason why the Unclaimed Property Division (UPD) was doing better.
Folwell said in a press statement, “For another record year, we were able to have a record number of receipts and claims paid.”
The section has 22.3 million properties worth $1.3 billion that are ready to be claimed.
In contrast, the UPD has paid out $610.5 million on 885,691 claims since 2017. This is a big jump from the $393.3 million paid out on 333,294 claims during the eight years that former State Treasurer Janet Cowell was in office.
People can go to NCCash.com and look for their own name or the name of a family member to find unclaimed property. This property can come from a number of places, such as forgotten bank accounts, wages, utility deposits, and safe deposit box contents.
The UPD paid 145,032 claims for a total of $115,063,782 in the fiscal year 2023–24, which ended on June 30, 2024. This was more than the previous high of $108,586,650 for 2022–23.
With help from the government, the treasurer’s office started the NCCash Match Program a few years ago. This means that people who have unclaimed funds of $5,000 or less will now get a letter from Folwell’s office telling them about the funds. When a citizen gets a letter, within six to eight weeks, a check will be sent to them directly, without them having to file a claim.
During his 92nd media call to date, Folwell told North State Journal that during his two terms as treasurer, there were many seven-figure claims that stood out. He chose to focus on two in particular.
“The one that really strikes me the most is the woman who had just lost her husband in an accident and was left $200,000 by someone,” Folwell said. “I think it was Sen. Joyce Krawiec from the Kernersville area who helped me find this person in the end.”
Folwell also talked about a rural high school PTA in the western part of the state. He said that the former treasurer had hidden $100 in McDonald’s stock from everyone. The PTA at that school got an extra $27,000 from that donation.