Don’t Leave Money Behind: How CPAs Can Help Clients Recover Hidden Assets During Business and Estate Transitions

Each year, billions of dollars in unclaimed property sit idle across the country, and more than $1.4 billion belongs to Oklahomans. Trusted financial advisors, CPAs are uniquely positioned to uncover these funds for their clients, especially during transitions like succession planning, estate administration or business restructuring. In recent years, the Oklahoma State Treasurer’s (OST) Office processed more than 30,000 unclaimed property claims, returning significant funds to individuals, families and businesses. Many of those claims originated because a financial professional, often a CPA, asked the right question at the right time.

Why Transitions Trigger Missed Assets

Clients consolidate, close or transfer financial assets during succession or estate planning. This process often reveals discrepancies: forgotten accounts, uncashed checks, unclaimed dividends or refunds. After a period of inactivity, these dormant assets are typically turned over to the State Treasurer’s Office and held securely until claimed.

As a CPA, you may be the first to spot a red flag: a client closing a decades-old business, an executor finalizing an estate or a retired professional wrapping up personal finances. These are ideal moments to check for unclaimed property.

How CPAs Can Integrate Searches into Client Work

1. Succession Planning and Business Closures:
Help clients conduct unclaimed property searches when winding down entities or transferring ownership. Old LLCs may have insurance credits, deposits or utility refunds.

2. Estate and Trust Administration:
Include a property check for decedents and beneficiaries during estate planning. Dormant life insurance proceeds or brokerage dividends are familiar sources of unclaimed funds.

3. Year-End Reviews and Advisory Meetings:
Make unclaimed property checks a value-added touchpoint during financial strategy sessions or year-end cleanups.

4. Technology Integration:
Add YourMoney.ok.gov as a resource within digital onboarding forms or client portals. Use automated task reminders to prompt annual property checks.

Why It Matters

Helping clients reclaim unclaimed property takes just minutes but can yield meaningful results. It reflects your diligence as a trusted advisor and enhances your client service, opens the door for referrals and strengthens relationships by showing you care about every dollar.

Get Started

The Oklahoma State Treasurer’s Office makes it easy. Visit YourMoney.ok.gov to search for unclaimed property by individual, business or estate name. You can also download the OST Financial Fitness Kit, which includes resources explicitly created for CPAs to help guide clients through the process.

As the CPA profession evolves to embrace advisory roles and smart technologies, small actions like these can deliver a lasting impact. Help your clients recover what’s rightfully theirs and set yourself apart in the process.