Service detail
Foreclosure Surplus Recovery
When a foreclosed property sells at auction for more than the mortgage, fees, and liens against it, the remainder belongs to the former owner. We locate it and file the claim.
Check for fundsWhat this is
A foreclosure sale is an auction run to satisfy a debt. The bidder pays a price, the lender takes the payoff, the costs of sale come out, and whatever remains is called surplus or excess proceeds depending on the state.
That remainder belongs to the person who owned the property when it was sold, or to their heirs if they have since died. It does not belong to the lender, the buyer, or the county. Nobody is required to hunt you down and hand it over.
Until it is claimed, the money sits with the clerk of court, the sheriff, or the court registry in the county of sale. After a statutory period it is usually reported to the state as unclaimed property, where it can still be claimed but through a different office.
You may be owed surplus if…
- Your home sold at foreclosure auction for more than you owed
- You received foreclosure notices but never checked whether there was money left after the sale
- A family member lost a property to foreclosure and may have left funds behind
- You moved after the foreclosure and never received notice about excess proceeds
- The property sold in a rising market, where the auction price ran well past the debt
Typical recoveries
$3,000 — $85,000
The spread comes from how far the auction price ran past the debt, and from what survived the sale: junior liens, HOA assessments, and tax liens are paid before you are.
Range, not a promise. Individual results depend on the record in your case.
Our process
01
We search the records
We pull the sale record, the docket, and the surplus ledger for the county. It costs nothing and obligates you to nothing.
02
We confirm you're the rightful claimant
Deed, title history, identification, and where the owner has died, the estate record naming every heir with an interest.
03
We prepare and file the claim
We file a motion or petition for disbursement of surplus in the foreclosure case itself, with the deed, the sale record, and proof of identity attached, and serve every party of record.
04
The county or court pays you
Payment is issued on the disbursement order. Our 30% fee is deducted at that point and never before. No recovery, no fee.
*Our fees include the legal support given by our law partners who represent our clients to claim their surplus.
Want us to check the record for you?
A records search costs nothing and puts you under no obligation.
Start a records search