Why didn't I get a letter about my surplus funds?
Because the system mails it to the last address it has for you — and after a foreclosure, that address is almost always the house that was just sold. In Ohio, the clerk of courts must send notice by certified mail to the judgment debtor's last known address when a sheriff's sale leaves a balance of $500 or more (according to publicly available Ohio statute, R.C. 2329.44). In Georgia, the officer who ran a tax sale must send notice of excess funds within 30 days by first-class mail to the record owner at the property's address (per O.C.G.A. § 48-4-5).
Think about what that means. You lost the house. You packed, you moved in with family or into a rental across town, and someone else — often the bank or an investor — took the keys. Weeks or months later, an envelope arrives at that same house saying money is waiting for you. The new occupant tosses it. USPS mail forwarding, if you set it up at all, expires after 12 months — and many surplus notices go out after the redemption and confirmation process has run, sometimes right at the edge of that window.
This isn't a rare glitch. It is the single biggest reason surplus money goes unclaimed.
How often does this actually happen?
More often than anyone in the system likes to admit. When the Columbus Dispatch and USA TODAY Network investigated Franklin County, Ohio foreclosures (the "Foreclosed and Fleeced" investigation), an estimate presented at a county court hearing put it bluntly: about 95% of homeowners don't know they might have money left over after a foreclosure. The same investigation found the county had gone decades without reliably sending the notices Ohio law required — and that private operators were finding the money first and taking large cuts from owners who never knew it existed.
After that reporting, Franklin County started notifying owners more consistently (WOSU covered the change) — but notice still chases your address on record, and no reporter is watching every county. The pattern that investigation exposed is the pattern everywhere: the money is real, the notice is fragile, and the people who track it professionally are rarely the owners.
I moved years ago. Could money still be waiting for me?
Possibly — it depends on which kind of sale it was and how long ago. The money doesn't sit in one place forever; it moves along a conveyor belt, and at certain points it can be lost for good.
Use this table as your map, then confirm your own dates with the county — we encourage it:
| Your sale | Where the money goes | Your deadline reality |
|---|---|---|
| Ohio — mortgage foreclosure (sheriff's sale) | Held by the Clerk of Courts in your old case; if unclaimed after notice, transferred to the county's unclaimed funds | Generally still claimable even years later, though a court order may be needed after transfer |
| Ohio — tax foreclosure | Paid into the county treasury under your name | 3 years to demand payment — after that, permanently forfeited (R.C. 5721.20) |
| Georgia — tax sale | Held by the county Tax Commissioner | 5 years from the sale — then sent to the Georgia Department of Revenue, recoverable only by court order (O.C.G.A. § 48-4-5) |
| Georgia — mortgage foreclosure | Held by the foreclosing lender's law firm; disputed funds deposited with the Superior Court | No automatic notice at all — money can sit quietly for years |
How do I check for surplus funds if I never got a notice?
You don't need the letter. The letter was only ever a pointer to public records — and you can read those yourself, free, in about ten minutes:
- Find your county and sale type. Any old paperwork helps, but even just the property address is enough.
- Ohio mortgage foreclosure: look up your old case on the county clerk's docket (every county page on this site links the exact search), or call the Clerk of Courts and ask: "Was a surplus deposited in my foreclosure case, and was it ever claimed?"
- Ohio tax sale: ask the county treasurer or auditor whether excess funds are held under your name — and check the county's unclaimed funds portal.
- Georgia tax sale: check the county Tax Commissioner's published excess funds list — Gwinnett and Chatham post theirs online — or call the office.
- Georgia mortgage foreclosure: contact the law firm named on your foreclosure paperwork, and check with the Superior Court clerk for funds paid into the court.
- Also check the state's unclaimed property database (Ohio · Georgia DOR) — older money migrates there. These searches are free; never pay anyone just to search.
What if the notice went out while my parent still owned the home — and they've passed away?
This is one of the most common versions of the lost-letter story. A parent or grandparent loses a home late in life, moves in with family or into care, and passes away — and the surplus notice is still chasing an address nobody watches. Heirs can usually claim the money, but counties and courts pay estates, not individual relatives, so probate paperwork (letters testamentary or letters of administration) is typically required first.
Start with our guide for heirs claiming a deceased parent's surplus funds, and if probate is the wall you're hitting, letters testamentary vs. letters of administration explains the document every county will ask for. The deadlines in the table above apply to heirs too — which is why acting matters even mid-grief.
Update your address — the one step that protects future money
If your foreclosure is recent or still in progress, there is one cheap, powerful move: put your new address on the record. File a written notice of your current mailing address with the clerk of courts in your foreclosure case (Ohio) or send it to the foreclosing law firm and the tax commissioner (Georgia), and extend your USPS forwarding before it lapses. Nolo's guidance on foreclosure surpluses makes the same point: the trustee or court can only mail to the address they have for you.
It costs a stamp, and it's the difference between the system finding you — or a stranger finding your money.
Want us to check the record for you?
Everything above you can do yourself, free — and we mean that. Where we earn our place is when the trail is cold or complicated: sales from years ago, money already transferred to unclaimed funds, a deceased owner, competing lienholders, or a county that requires a court filing to release anything. Our licensed attorneys in Ohio and Georgia pull the record, confirm whether money exists, and handle the entire claim with no upfront costs — no attorney fees, no filing fees, no court costs out of your pocket. You pay nothing unless money is actually recovered.
This page is education about publicly available law and records, not legal advice — for decisions about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney. And whether you use us, another firm, or nobody at all: check. The letter may have missed you, but the money doesn't stop being yours.
Keep reading
- State guides: Ohio surplus funds, Georgia excess funds, Florida surplus funds
- Got a Letter About Surplus Funds? How to Tell If It's Real
- Is Surplus Funds Recovery Legit? How to Tell the Real Thing From a Scam
- How Long Do I Have to Claim Surplus Funds After Foreclosure?
- Can I Claim Surplus Funds Myself, Without a Lawyer or Recovery Company?
Sources
- Ohio Revised Code § 2329.44 — notice of excess funds from judicial sales
- Ohio Revised Code § 5721.20 — unclaimed tax-foreclosure excess and forfeiture
- O.C.G.A. § 48-4-5 — 30-day notice and payment of tax-sale excess funds (Justia)
- "Foreclosed and Fleeced" — Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY Network investigation (archived)
- WOSU — Franklin County Now Notifies Foreclosed Property Owners Of Leftover Money
- USPS — mail forwarding duration and limits
- Ohio Division of Unclaimed Funds — free search
- Georgia Department of Revenue — Unclaimed Property Program
- Gwinnett County Tax Commissioner — Tax Sale Excess Funds list
- Chatham County Tax Commissioner — Excess Funds
- Nolo — What Happens to Excess Proceeds From a Foreclosure Sale
- Franklin County Clerk of Courts — Obtain Excess Funds in Foreclosure Cases