Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis today announced that the first of two 2017 unclaimed property auctions, held Saturday in Fort Lauderdale, earned $1.194 million. All of the auction’s nearly 48,000 individual items sold, and the highest grossing individual auction item was a 14k gold ring with a 4.02-carat European cut diamond that sold for $11,500.
Items included in the Department of Financial Services’ unclaimed property auctions come from abandoned safe deposit boxes. Despite at least five years of exhaustive efforts, no rightful owner or entitled heir stepped forward to claim the boxes or the items contained within them. However, the proceeds earned from the sale of auction items can be claimed at any time and at no cost should an owner ever come forward.
The second 2017 unclaimed property auction will be held August 25 and August 26 in Orlando at the Florida Hotel and Conference Center, located at 1500 Sand Lake Road. Items included in the auction will be available for public preview on Friday, August 25. The auction will take place the following day, Saturday, August 26. A catalog containing descriptions of the upcoming auction items will be available in the coming days.
Roughly 1-in-5 Floridians has an unclaimed property account in their name. To search for unclaimed property or to claim an account, please visit www.FLTreasureHunt.gov.
Unclaimed Property Auction
CFO Patronis Invites Floridians to 2017 Unclaimed Property Auction in Fort Lauderdale
Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis invites Floridians to participate in the 2017 Florida Unclaimed Property Auction. This public auction featuring the sale of nearly 50,000 individual items valued at more than $630,000 will be hosted Saturday, July 29, at the Sheraton Suites Cypress Creek in Fort Lauderdale. A public preview will be held Friday, July 28, at the Sheraton Suites hotel.
Featured items in this year’s auction include a 12-pound silver bar recovered from shipwreck Atocha, a vintage Wilt Chamberlain basketball card, 4.3-carat diamond earrings, and several high-end watches from brands such as Rolex, Chopard and Bulgari.
2017 Unclaimed Property Auction Preview
Date: Friday, July 28
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Location: Sheraton Suites Cypress Creek
Address: 555 NW 62nd Street
Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 32256
2017 Unclaimed Property Auction
Date: Saturday, July 29
Time: 10:00 a.m. (Registration opens at 8:00 a.m.)
Location: Sheraton Suites Cypress Creek
Address: 555 NW 62nd Street
Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 32256
The unclaimed property auction features items from safe deposit boxes that have gone unclaimed for years despite exhaustive efforts to return them to their owners. Proceeds from the auction are deposited into the state’s education fund where they work to support Florida’s public school system. Should a property owner discover that he or she owned an item that was auctioned; however, the proceeds from the sale can be claimed any time at no cost.
For full details about this weekend’s auction, or to search for or claim unclaimed property, visit www.FLTreasureHunt.gov, or call 1-88-VALUABLE or 850-413-5555. A free catalog, which lists each item up for sale, is also available on the website.
