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Process

If you've never heard of the terms "surplus fund" or "excess proceeds", you're not alone. Most people aren't aware of the existence of surplus funds nor what happens to the property they owned after it has been foreclosed. In fact, according to the American Fund Recovery, there are more than $70 billion worth of surplus funds currently held that are unclaimed nationwide. You may be wondering, why doesn't the county inform rightful claimants that they're owed these funds in the first place?

Truth is, many county offices do send out notices, however, they are typically mailed to the last known address of the owner—which is often the foreclosed property itself. By the time it's sent out, many former homeowners have already relocated so they never receive the notice and so never file a claim. As a result, (for judicial claims), the funds remain with the county and may eventually be transferred to the state, where they can remain unclaimed indefinitely. In non-judicial claims, the surplus funds are held by a third party known as a trustee which is typically a law firm representing the mortgage lender.

At Silver Lining Relief, we work with the county and attorneys to help you file a claim to recover what's rightfully yours from the county/state. We operate on a contingency basis, meaning you pay nothing upfront and only pay after your funds have been successfully recovered. If we’re unable to retrieve them for any reason, you pay absolutely nothing. Here’s how the process starts:

  • Research and Analysis phase: When a foreclosed property has gone through an auction sale, we'll review the transaction records from the county database as well as other supporting documentations (Final Writ, Deed document, Owner's encumbrance report, etc) to confirm that the property has been sold to a 3rd party bidder and validate the existence of a surplus fund. We will also check to verify whether a claim form has already been filed or not.
    • Due diligence assessment (judicial claims only): The second part to this phase will be what's called a due diligence assessment where we check the financial history of the property for any outstanding debt. Among the transactions we check for includes but not limited to - Home equity line of credit, second mortgages or liens. If there's a substantial debt remaining, that may impact how much of the surplus amount that you may receive. Once we've verified the above, we'll then reach out to the previous owner or their heirs.
  • Initial Outreach phase: We will contact the previous owner/heirs by phone or email. The initial outreach will be a brief conversation to inform them of what happened after their property had been foreclosed. We will go over the process of how they are owed surplus funds and how we could assist them in filing a claim. After the call, we will send more information by email for review by the rightful owner and then follow up with another call (usually a video call) later in the week. If the previous owner/heirs decide that they're interested in pursuing the funds and agree to work with us, we will then move on to the agreement phase.
  • Agreement phase: An email will be sent summarizing what transpired after the foreclosure as well as the state statutes and additional information about our company. Attached to this email will be documentation of the auction results, an agreement form, and other forms (county claim application form, notice of surplus funds letter). The agreement form will include the terms of our service and an agreed upon contingency fee percentage.The agreement form will need to be signed, notarized and be sent with valid ID and other supporting documents from the claimant.
  • Legal Documentation & Claim Submission phase: The documents will then be turned over to an attorney in our network who will connect with the claimant to establish an agreement to file the documents to the county or state treasury on their behalf. 
  • Follow-up phase: After a claim has been sent, we will periodically follow up with the county or State Treasury department and keep you updated on the progress of the request claims until the claims have been successfully paid out. This process can take between 3 weeks or a few months depending on the county/state statutes.
  • Payout phase: After all is said and done, once the surplus funds have been successfully sent from either the county or trustee, the attorney will receive it and disperse the funds to all parties in accordance to the terms set by the agreement form. In the event that the attorney send the funds to the claimant only, the claimant will pay a portion of the funds based on the contingency fee amount to us for our services.