Process
What actually happens, in order
A surplus claim is a court or county filing, not a form submission. Here is the sequence, what each step requires from you, and how long it usually takes.
01
We search the records
We pull the sale record, the case docket, and the surplus ledger for the county. This costs nothing and does not obligate you. You do not have to give us a phone number to start — the lookup on our home page returns the office and the rule for your state with no contact details at all.
Same day — 3 days
02
We confirm you're the rightful claimant
Deed, title history, and identification. Where the owner has died, this also means the will, the letters of administration, and an heirship record for every heir with an interest. This step is slow when a family is large or a probate was never opened, and we will tell you that before you spend time on it.
1 — 4 weeks
03
We prepare and file the claim
We assemble the petition, the affidavits, and the exhibits. The filing itself is made by contracted legal counsel admitted in that state, engaged and paid by Phoenix Equity Group. You are not billed for counsel and you do not sign a retainer with them.
2 — 6 weeks to filing
04
We handle competing claims
This is the step that decides whether you are paid, and it is the step the rest of this industry does not mention.
Surplus funds attract other filers. Junior lienholders, second mortgage servicers, HOAs with recorded assessments, judgment creditors, the IRS or a state tax authority, and sometimes the auction purchaser will each file against the same money. Some of those claims are valid and are paid ahead of you. Many are stale, unperfected, released years ago, or barred by limitations — and unless somebody appears and says so on the record, they get paid anyway.
We answer those claims, obtain releases, order title work to prove what actually survived the sale, and appear at the disbursement hearing. Where a claim is legitimately senior, we tell you the number you will actually see before you decide whether to continue.
1 — 9 months, case dependent
05
The county or court pays you
The clerk or court registry issues payment on the disbursement order. Our 30% fee is deducted at that point and never before. If the claim recovers nothing, you owe us nothing — no filing costs, no counsel fees, no administrative charge.
30 — 90 days after the order
*Our fees include the legal support given by our law partners who represent our clients to claim their surplus.
What can go wrong
A claim can be denied on the merits — someone senior to you is entitled to the money. It can also be rejected for a technicality: a missing notarization, an heirship affidavit that does not name every heir, a caption that does not match the case, a deadline in a local rule nobody publishes. Technical rejections are common and usually fixable by refiling. We do not charge you again to refile.
Some claims should not be brought at all. If the liens surviving the sale exceed the surplus, we will say so and close the file.