Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

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bueller_bueller
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Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 11:34 am

Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

Post by bueller_bueller »

Hello friendly bogleheads,

I am helping a family member with her finances. She has two stocks that she held in stock certificate form that were escheated by the state of Florida, one in 2008 and another in 2019. Just googling around, it looks like the general pattern is for the stock to make an effort to contact the owner, to sell the stocks, and then give the owner the old value of the stocks when it was escheated upon claiming the unclaimed property. I am not sure this is the case with every state, or in every case, or if there is a way to get around this.

We can see both of the stocks online on an unclaimed property search and the cash value of claiming them is *much* lower than they would have been worth if they had not been escheated.

So:
1) I wonder if there is a way to recover the stocks as *shares* rather than as the cash value that the state is showing?
2) Are there lawyers that work on this type of thing?
3) Is it just up to the state and she will need to settle with having lost the funds (which are quite significant).

As an aside, both were escheated during years that she moved, so my guess is that the mail regarding them was not forwarded, or she just didn't understand the language of the letters. :oops:

Thanks so much!
alex_686
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Re: Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

Post by alex_686 »

Probably cash only. Here is a easy listening podcast.

https://www.npr.org/2020/01/24/79934515 ... cheat-show
Former brokerage operations & mutual fund accountant. I hate risk, which is why I study and embrace it.
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quantAndHold
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Re: Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

Post by quantAndHold »

That’s how escheat works, unfortunately. When the account was escheated, the stock got sold. The state is just holding cash now.
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Watty
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Re: Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

Post by Watty »

quantAndHold wrote: Sat Dec 04, 2021 11:05 pm That’s how escheat works, unfortunately. When the account was escheated, the stock got sold. The state is just holding cash now.
Out of curiosity, does anyone know how capital gains taxes work when that happens?
Topic Author
bueller_bueller
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Joined: Tue Jun 30, 2020 11:34 am

Re: Recovering stock shares escheated by state of Florida?

Post by bueller_bueller »

Thanks everyone for the replies, unfortunately the growth during those years after it was escheated is gone. The equivalent of hiding cash under a mattress. Well, at least that is something, even if not much. I definitely recommend searching sites for unclaimed property in any state you have lived in.
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