When a foreclosed or tax-sold home sells for more than the debt owed, the difference legally belongs to the former owner. The U.S. Supreme Court confirmed the principle unanimously in Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023). What varies by state is the name of the money, who holds it, and how long you have. Pick your state below.
State guides (statute-verified)
- Florida surplus funds: the local term is “surplus funds”.
- Georgia excess funds: the local term is “excess funds”.
- Ohio surplus funds: the local term is “surplus funds”. Tax-sale money here has a hard forfeiture deadline.
Why just three states
We publish a state guide only after verifying its statutes, offices, and deadlines against primary sources, not recycled filler. Right now that means going deep in Ohio, Georgia and Florida rather than spreading thin across all fifty.
Don't see your state? Request a free record checkanyway, and we'll tell you plainly whether it's somewhere we can help.