Snoopy reporter finds thousands in missing money. You likely can get some of that $1.8B

The state of Washington owes nearly everyone money.

At least that’s the way it seemed when I recently spent the morning typing in the names of family, friends and co-workers into the state Department of Revenue’s missing money website.

The state of Washington requires banks and other businesses to make an effort to return money unclaimed by customers. If they can’t, it’s sent to the state for safekeeping. It’s difficult to say just how hard those businesses try because the state is currently holding $1.8 billion.

At least 80 percent of the roughly 50 names I searched had money coming to them.

Except for me.

That’s how it began, with dreams of sipping piña coladas at a Hawaiian resort, lighting cigars with $100 bills — all part of the new found wealth I’d surely uncover with the click of a mouse at claimyourcash.org.

It turns out the state owes money to a lot of Sailors, just not me.

Then I saw my mother’s name on the list. An alarm company she used years ago owed her $50.

Encouraged, I started plugging in more names. My next door neighbor had just a few bucks coming to him, but my doctor had nearly 20 items attached to his name totaling hundreds of dollars.

I even looked up my editor, Adam Lynn, and found more than $100 for him. I called him with the news and his usual grumpiness lightened for a moment.

“Send me that website,” he said before hanging up.

I sent joyful texts to everyone I discovered had cash coming to them. Most were well received, but a Seattle friend thought I was scammer when I texted him. I provided some personal details to convince him, and he ended up getting a couple hundred dollars.

“Are you stalking me online?” another friend asked. I think she was joking.

Big Money

One of the friends I reached out to, Michele Neary, was already aware of the site. As a small business owner in Olympia, she checks it periodically. When I told her of my success, she, too, began looking for others in her circle.

That’s why her nephew in Hoquiam, Jake Biscay, will soon be getting $2,400 from the state. Biscay’s windfall was gratifying to hear, but it raised a question: How exactly does one misplace $2,400?

I called Biscay.

“I really don’t know,” Biscay said. “I think it had to do with something when I was going to school in Bellingham.”

The money came from a Bellingham-based bank, but it was one he never used. Biscay thinks a grant earmarked for his tuition never made it to him.

Years earlier, Biscay’s cousin told him about the site, but Biscay just brushed it off at the time, like so many do, because he wasn’t aware of any money he was owed.

The process

Biscay said the process of filling out the form and uploading documents was straightforward.

For others, the process can be onerous. The state needs to be convinced of your identity (a standard driver’s license or ID will do), and you need to prove you are associated with the address that is listed for each item. If you can’t prove you lived at the address, it might be hard to file a claim.

After an individual claim is made, the Revenue Department emails claimants with an electronic form that is meant to be filled out and uploaded along with the necessary documents. A phone’s camera will do the trick for document copying.

Time equals money, and you’ll have to figure out if it’s worth the trouble to make a claim.

Best case scenario: A big money item attached to the address you still reside at.

Worst case scenario: A pittance of an item attached to a deceased family member’s estate associated with an address from years ago.

A co-worker found that her late mother was owed less than $25. The eight documents that she would have needed in order to establish identities, date of death, inheritance, addresses and other information just weren’t worth the trouble, she decided.

A friend in Normandy Park has $400 coming to her after I searched for her deceased husband’s name. The biggest payout was from a temp agency he worked at more than two decades ago. As his widow, she is the rightful heir to the money.

Another friend found that his deceased mother was owed $50 from Nordstrom. The family hadn’t lived at the Olympia address listed with the item for decades. The money likely will never be claimed.

Skeptical users

Currently, there are 11.1 million separate unclaimed property items in the state’s database. Washington only has 7.7 million residents. I’m not a mathematician, but I’d say that’s better than the 1 in 225 million odds you have of winning Powerball.

The odds were in favor for my friend Eion McReady when I spotted his name in the database. A mortgage company owed him $278 from a real estate sale.

“That will pay for my groceries,” he said.

If you have an unusual name, like McReady’s, you’ll find yourself fairly quickly. For Jane Smith, Francisco Garcia and other common names, you can narrow the search by adding all the cities you’ve lived in while in Washington.

Washington’s unclaimed money department and its website aren’t new. The law that enacted it was passed in 1955, but it didn’t take off until the 1980s. And, like many things, the internet has made finding that money easier.

Still, Revenue Department administrator Joseph Gisler told me, the agency is constantly fighting consumer skepticism about the site.

“There’s a million people that think it’s a scam,” Gisler said, sounding a bit frustrated. The department advertises the site and sets up info booths at community events across the state.

“Our tent and everything is ‘Department of Revenue’. People still think that (it’s a scam),“ he said.

A stumbling block for some is the requirement for a Social Security number in order to file a claim. But the number is not needed to search the database.

Money season

In June, the state added $246 million in unclaimed assets to its holding tank of money.

Gisler says he looks for his own name twice a year. Most of the new funds show up at the Revenue Department from July through October when businesses must report and turn over funds after a three-year abandonment period. But those won’t usually show up on the website until January or February.

The biggest recent claim was for $2.4 million, Gisler said. He couldn’t offer details but said he has three people who work as locators, tracking down the people tied to large claims — usually $10,000 and above.

When new properties come in, the Revenue Department sends a postcard to the address associated with each item, but only if it’s $75 or more.

Most of the items, judging by my unscientific perusal, seem to be $25 or less. The average claim, Gisler said, is $130.

Other states

Just about all states have their own version’s of Washington’s missing money site. If you’ve lived in another state, it might be beneficial to check them out.

A legitimate site that Gisler recommends is missingmoney.com, which collects information from most — but not all — states.

Gisler said to be wary of third-party companies that will track down your missing money for a finder’s fee. You can do the same work they offer within seconds, and you get to keep all the money.

“We want to give the money back,” Gisler said. “Just don’t assume that you’re not going to have unclaimed property because you’re really good with your finances. It has nothing to do with it.”