Although Minnesota unclaimed money totals are not published, last year the state took in over $72 million in money and unclaimed property. The state also boasts that 1 in 20 Minnesota residents have a claim waiting for them. Like most states, they also have physical property that goes unclaimed.
Minnesota Unclaimed Money Auction
This past July the state held its first ever auction for the unclaimed property they’ve collected over the years. The state was likely facing storage issues and decided to auction the property off. They listed over 400 items varying from diamond rings, to currency, to basketball cards. Here are some of the items they listed
- 1937 Bank of Canada $2 bill commemorating Royal Wedding
- Morgan Silver Dollar Collection: 1878 S Morgan Silver Dollar
- Ladies 18K White Gold Diamond fashion ring, center stone is Diamond 1 CT – Sold for $2200
- Gorham Sterling Chantilly Pattern Silverware 12 place setting with extra pieces – Sold for $1200
- 1877 $20 Liberty Gold type-3 VF+ to XF – Sold for $1200
- Ladies Modified Omega 18K White Gold 20″ necklace with safety clasp- Sold for $1100
- Men’s Rolex Oyster Viceroy T/Tone yellow manual wind wrist watch with luminous hands – Sold for $900
- Oriental Minted 6.1865 Troy Oz. Sterling Silver Bar – Sold for $550
- Round Diamond Stone .51 PT – Sold for $500
- 1914 $5 Federal Reserve Note horse blanket 2-B star note – Sold for $210
- Obsolete Bank Notes: Pre Civil War Citizens Bank of Louisiana $5 Note – Sold for $80
- Series 1901 U.S. Red Seal horse blanket $10 note – Sold for $70
- Assorted Michael Jordan Cards (Basketball and Baseball) – Sold for $65
Don’t worry if any of these items look familiar, Minnesota isn’t pocketing the money. They take the proceeds from the sale and put them in an account with the property owners name. This way should they search post auction they will get the money from the sale.
Future Unclaimed Property Auctions
There is no announcement yet on if this Minnesota unclaimed money auction will be an annual event or not but many states have adopted an annual or semi annual auction to help keep their storage costs down. Minnesota’s website is updated regularly, so be sure to check back to see if another auction is scheduled!