Unclaimed property auction brings $248K for owners

With 102 people bidding on more than 1,000 items, an unclaimed property auction in Columbia Oct. 4 netted more than $248,000, which will be held in owners’ names by Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel’s office until it is claimed.
 
“This money never goes to the state; it is a promise by me to taxpayers that I will return their money whenever they claim it,” Zweifel said in a news release.

Since taking office, Zweifel has returned more than $91 million in unclaimed property to more than 280,000 account owners, the release said.
 
The largest single winning bid during the auction – conducted by auctioneer James Johnston of Marshall – was $3,100 for a silver bar that weighs 101.27 troy ounces. Other items included an Ozzie Smith-autographed baseball and photo, which were auctioned as a pair for $25, and hundreds of rare coins, jewelry and books.
 
The items are from safe deposit boxes turned over to the treasurer’s office after five years of inactivity or no owner contact. In the state’s southwest region, which includes Greene County, there is roughly $31.7 million in unclaimed property for more than 356,000 accounts, the release said.
 
There is more than $600 million worth of property in more than 3.5 million owner accounts being held in the Unclaimed Property division. Missourians can check for unclaimed property at www.ShowMeMoney.com. There is no fee for property return, and about 55 percent of claims are eligible for paperless processing.[[In-content Ad]]