South Carolina's Lost Millions: How to Find Your Unclaimed Money and Savings Bonds

Did you know that South Carolina misplaced $1.8 billion? It's true.

A recent headline in The Post and Courier caught people's attention: "How did SC lose track of $1.8 billion?" The money isn't actually gone, but the state had lost track of it, unaware that it was there. And believe it or not, many consumers often lose track of their money too.

In an ironic twist, the South Carolina Treasurer's Office manages the Unclaimed Property Program, which currently holds nearly $1 billion in cash and other financial assets that haven't been claimed by their rightful owners.

So, how did current and former Palmetto State residents manage to misplace a staggering $956,126,253? It turns out that all those little rebates, refunds, dividends, escrowed money, undelivered paychecks, and insurance benefits add up, along with other types of missing money.

The good news is that searching for unclaimed money in the state is easy. Just visit southcarolina.findyourunclaimedproperty.com and enter your name. You might be surprised to find friends or family members listed there.

In fact, searching for unclaimed money has become a popular hobby for some people. Sam Brownlee, a Charleston-area resident, made it his retirement activity to search the state's unclaimed funds database and personally contact people who are owed money.

Since 2013, he has found over $400,000 owed to Charleston-area residents. You too can become a hero among your friends and relatives by searching for unclaimed money for them.

It's interesting to note that the names and addresses listed on the unclaimed property site are often correct. This raises the question of why the unclaimed funds didn't reach the rightful owners in the first place.

Some unclaimed funds can be attributed to understandable circumstances, such as the case of a deceased great uncle owed less than $100 from an unreturned deposit to a cable company.

But unclaimed money isn't just limited to South Carolina. Across the United States, consumers are sitting on approximately $23 billion worth of unused gift cards. So, it's worth checking if you still have money left on those forgotten gift cards.

Another commonly forgotten source of unclaimed funds are U.S. savings bonds. It's easy to forget about them because bonds can be owned for decades, and after enough time passes, they cease to generate interest. Currently, there are over $39 billion in matured savings bonds that are no longer earning interest.

Thankfully, there's a way to determine if you have unclaimed savings bonds. The U.S. government's treasurydirect.gov website offers a feature called Treasury Hunt, which allows you to search for bonds using your name or Social Security number. It's definitely worth taking a look.

So, whether it's unclaimed money or forgotten savings bonds, it's surprising how much wealth goes unclaimed. Make sure to check if any of it belongs to you. You never know—you might find a pleasant surprise waiting for you.