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Making the Most of Unclaimed Property in Maryland

Locate MD state unclaimed property to use in your business

By Emmet McMahan
Making the most of unclaimed property in Maryland will require you to determine the holder of the property. Cities and counties may serve as custodians of unclaimed property until certain criteria are met. At that time, custodianship of the property is then turned over to the state. This allows claimants to search for their property in a central location.

Unclaimed property in Maryland can be an inexpensive way to obtain business equipment as companies frequently lose property through misfortune or carelessness. The appropriate agency will require specific forms and procedures in order to approve your claim on the property. Unclaimed property generally falls into one of the following categories:
  1. Liquid assets such as uncashed checks, a bank account or the contents of a safe deposit box.
  2. Maryland abandoned property that the original owner is unlikely to claim. This is commonly a wrecked vehicle or real estate with delinquent taxes, but may also include a treasure trove. Property owners usually have a superior claim to a treasure trove than a trespasser who discovers the property.
  3. Maryland state unclaimed property that is confiscated by law enforcement. This is frequently the result of a drug or tax seizure.

 

Find agencies that handle state of Maryland unclaimed property

Start at the state level if you are looking for property that belongs to a specific person and work down.
Try: The Comptroller of Maryland keeps track of unclaimed property and allows you to search by name. The Police Department for Baltimore County outlines its procedures for disposing of unclaimed property in its possession.

Learn more about the laws regarding Maryland unclaimed properties

Each state has laws regarding the disposition of unclaimed property. These laws should specify the conditions that allow the state to assume custodianship of the property and any conditions that allow the property to revert to the state.
Try: Michie's Legal Resources contains Title 17 of the Maryland Code which covers the disposition of unclaimed property. KBST&M provides instructions on accounting for unclaimed property in Maryland.

Buy a vehicle in a MD unclaimed property auction

Look at the various auctions that occur regularly throughout Maryland if you are interested in bidding on a car. Vehicles are typically the mainstays of unclaimed property auctions and consist of abandoned vehicles, vehicles seized by law enforcement and surplus vehicles.
Try: BCS America is a government contractor that sells abandoned vehicles in Bel Air. AuctionZip provides a list of upcoming auctions for abandoned vehicles in Maryland.

 

  • The process of turning over unclaimed property in MD to the state is called escheatment and legal documents may therefore refer to the property as escheat. Businesses usually encounter escheat in the form of an unclaimed pay check and are generally required to make a good faith effort to find the owner.

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