What Are Surplus Funds? Excess Proceeds Lists by County and How to Search Them
Surplus funds (excess proceeds) are what a tax or foreclosure sale brings above the debt. How county lists work and the claim rules in FL, TX, OH, AR and UT.
Quick answer
Surplus funds, also called excess proceeds or overages, are the money a tax sale or foreclosure sale brings above the debt, interest and costs. A clerk, court or state office holds it for lienholders and the former owner, and many publish a list. Claim rules differ by state: Florida allows 120 days from notice, Texas two years from the sale.
What are surplus funds?
The names change by state and by office. Florida statutes say surplus, Texas says excess proceeds, Ohio clerks publish excess funds lists, and investors say overages. The idea is the same: the government or the court may collect what is owed, not keep the rest.
The U.S. Supreme Court put that principle in constitutional terms in Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023). A Minnesota county sold a condo for $40,000 to collect about $15,000 in taxes and kept the difference. The Court held that while the county could sell the home to recover the taxes, "it could not use the tax debt to confiscate more property than was due," and noted that "Today, most States and the Federal Government require excess value to be returned to the taxpayer whose property is sold to satisfy outstanding tax debt."
Definition
Surplus funds (excess proceeds) — The balance left after a forced sale of real estate (a tax deed sale, tax foreclosure sale or sheriff's sale) pays the debt that caused it, with interest and costs. The holder pays it out to lienholders by priority and then to the former owner.
Where surplus funds come from
- Tax deed sales, where the county auctions the property itself after taxes go unpaid, as in Florida. See tax sale.
- Tax foreclosure sales ordered by a court in a suit to collect delinquent taxes, as in Texas.
- Sheriff's sales of foreclosed property under a court judgment, as in Ohio. See sheriff sale.
- State land office sales of tax-delinquent land, as in Arkansas, where the Commissioner of State Lands sells it.
- County tax sales that forward unclaimed balances to a state unclaimed property program, as in Utah County.
Surplus funds claim rules by state
Each rule below comes from the statute or the holding office, as of 2026-10-19. The deadline and the office that pays are the two things to find first.
| State | Who holds the money | Deadline and claim rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida (tax deed sale) | Clerk of the Circuit Court | Written, notarized claim within 120 days of the Clerk's mailed notice; government liens first, then other liens, then the titleholder; a late lienholder is barred, the owner is not | Fla. Stat. 197.582 |
| Texas (tax foreclosure sale) | Clerk of the court that ordered the sale (court registry) | If over $25, the clerk mails notice before the 31st day after receiving the money, and holds it 2 years; petition the court before the second anniversary of the sale; unclaimed money goes to the taxing units | Tex. Tax Code 34.03, 34.04 |
| Ohio (sheriff's sale) | Clerk of the court that issued the writ | Clerk notifies the judgment debtor; balance is paid on demand; if unclaimed 90 days after the last notice it is handled as unclaimed money | R.C. 2329.44 |
| Arkansas (state land sale) | Commissioner of State Lands | Held in escrow one year, then the record owner at the time of sale may apply; available 2 years for sales after July 1, 2018, then returned to the county | Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands |
| Utah (Utah County tax sale) | Utah County, then the State Treasurer | Held at least 90 days after the sale is ratified; claim by petition in the Fourth District Court; afterwards forwarded to the State Treasurer's unclaimed property office | Utah County Auditor |
Texas, Ohio, Arkansas and Utah in more detail
Texas. Section 34.04(a) is explicit: "The petition must be filed before the second anniversary of the date of the sale of the property." At the hearing the court pays, in order, a purchaser whose sale was voided, taxing units for later or omitted taxes, other lienholders, taxing units for unpaid judgment amounts, and then former owners who were defendants, their close relatives or heirs. The statute also polices middlemen: no one may take an assignment of an owner's claim unless it is taken at least 36 days after the deposit, not solicited in person or by phone, and paid at 80% or more of the claim; an attorney's fee is capped at 25% or $1,000, whichever is less; and "A person who is not an attorney may not charge a fee to obtain excess proceeds for an owner."
Ohio. The officer who made the sale delivers any balance to the clerk within 45 days after confirmation. For $500 or more, the clerk sends the judgment debtor a notice by certified mail within 90 days after the sale. The clerk "shall pay the balance to the judgment debtor or the judgment debtor's legal representatives" on demand, once the notice costs are paid. In Hamilton County, the Clerk's outline describes an application for distribution, service on every party, a hearing date and a signed order, and warns: "Remember that the funds balance shown might not be due to you at all or all of it might be yours to collect."
Arkansas. The Commissioner of State Lands writes: "After the sale, the funds are held in escrow for one year." After that the record owner at the time of sale may apply, using a claim form from the office. Funds from sales between July 1, 2005 and June 30, 2018 are available for three years, and later sales for two years, before going back to the county.
Utah. Utah County holds excess funds for no less than 90 days after the County Commission ratifies the sale. A claimant files a petition with the Fourth District Court and notifies the County Tax Administration Office within that time. Otherwise the "excess proceeds will be forwarded to the Utah State Treasurer's Office of Unclaimed Property," and claims are then made through the State's unclaimed property program. The county also sets conditions for fee finders who claim on someone else's behalf.
How much is on the lists we track
HeritageDeed tracks twelve official county lists, refreshed nightly. On 2026-10-19 they held 2,078 records totaling $31,250,041.47 (HeritageDeed surplus funds lists by county).
| County list | Sale type | Records | Total listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, OH | Sheriff's sale | 408 | $6,914,435.23 |
| Pulaski County, AR | Tax sale | 394 | $3,486,296.86 |
| Citrus County, FL | Tax deed sale | 272 | $3,345,280.21 |
| Hamilton County, OH | Sheriff's sale | 221 | $3,085,249.41 |
| Walton County, FL | Tax deed sale | 186 | $895,844.14 |
| Duval County, FL | Tax deed sale | 156 | $4,588,308.59 |
| Utah County, UT | Tax sale (now with the State) | 107 | $1,369,404.03 |
| Hernando County, FL | Tax deed sale | 92 | $1,860,656.45 |
| Pasco County, FL | Tax deed sale | 73 | $592,789.59 |
| Ector County, TX | Tax sale | 63 | $1,379,041.82 |
| Hillsborough County, FL | Tax deed sale | 54 | $2,937,753.52 |
| Martin County, FL | Tax deed sale | 52 | $794,981.62 |
How to search a surplus funds list
Identify the sale type and the office
A tax deed sale points to the county clerk, a court-ordered tax or foreclosure sale to the clerk of that court, a state land sale to the state office. The surplus funds lists by county page names the office for each county we track.
Match what the list shows
Lists differ. Some show the case or tax deed number, parcel, sale date and amount; others show only a file number and amount. Our county pages show individual former owners as initials only.
Read the deadline basis
Florida deadlines run from a mailed notice whose date is not on most lists, Texas from the sale date, Ohio from the clerk's notices. Treat any computed date as an estimate and confirm it with the office.
Check what was recorded against the property
Liens are paid before the former owner, so a list amount is not what an owner receives. A title search shows recorded mortgages, judgments and liens on the parcel, and see how to check for liens on a property.
File with the office, on its form
Florida uses a notarized claim with the Clerk, Texas and Ohio a filing in the court case, Arkansas a claim form from the Commissioner, Utah a court petition or, once forwarded, the State's unclaimed property claim.
Recovery companies and assignments
Foreclosure sales add to the pool
For a sense of volume, Philadelphia's Department of Records recorded 2,087 sheriff's deeds between 2025-10-20 and 2026-08-11, out of 27,046 deeds in that period. Each sale that brings more than the judgment, interest and costs can leave a balance for lienholders and the former owner, under the rules of the state where it happened.
Key takeaways
Key takeaways
- Surplus funds, excess proceeds and overages all mean what a forced sale brings above the debt, interest and costs.
- Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023) held that a county cannot keep more than the tax debt.
- Deadlines vary: 120 days from notice in Florida, two years from the sale in Texas, escrow then two years in Arkansas, 90 days after ratification in Utah County.
- Lienholders are paid before the former owner, so a listed amount is not a payout.
- Claims go to the clerk, court or state office on its own form; no recovery company is required.
Frequently asked questions
- What are surplus funds from a foreclosure?
- They are what a foreclosure or sheriff's sale brings above the judgment, interest and costs. The court clerk holds the balance and pays lienholders by priority, then the former owner. In Ohio, R.C. 2329.44 governs how the clerk notifies the owner and pays the balance.
- Where can I find an excess proceeds list?
- From the office that holds the money: the county clerk for Florida tax deeds, the district clerk for Texas tax suits, the clerk of courts for Ohio sheriff's sales, the Commissioner of State Lands in Arkansas. HeritageDeed's surplus funds pages cover twelve county lists, refreshed nightly.
- Are unclaimed surplus funds lost forever?
- Not always. In Florida unclaimed surplus is presumed to belong to the titleholder and handled under the unclaimed property chapter. In Ohio the clerk disposes of it as unclaimed money under R.C. 2335.34 and 2335.35, and Utah County forwards it to the State Treasurer's unclaimed property office. In Texas it goes to the taxing units after two years, and in Arkansas back to the county after the claim period.
- Do I need a surplus funds recovery company?
- No. Each state lets the owner or lienholder file directly with the clerk, court or state office. Texas bars non-attorneys from charging owners a fee to obtain excess proceeds and caps attorney fees at 25% or $1,000, whichever is less.
- Who gets surplus funds first, the owner or the lienholders?
- Lienholders, in order of priority. Florida pays governmental liens first, then other liens, then the titleholder. Texas pays taxing units and lienholders before former owners.
- How long does Texas hold excess proceeds?
- Two years after the date of the sale, unless the court orders otherwise, under Tex. Tax Code 34.03. A claim must be filed as a petition in the court that ordered the sale before the second anniversary of the sale; after that, unclaimed proceeds are distributed to the taxing units.
Legal references
Statutes and rules cited in this article.
- 1Florida Statutes 197.582, Disbursement of proceeds of sale
- 2Texas Tax Code 34.03, Disposition of Excess Proceeds
- 3Texas Tax Code 34.04, Claims for Excess Proceeds
- 4Ohio Revised Code 2329.44, Excess payable to debtor; notice to debtor
- 5Tyler v. Hennepin County (U.S. Supreme Court, 2023)
Cite this guide
APA
HeritageDeed. (2026, October 19). What Are Surplus Funds? Excess Proceeds Lists by County and How to Search Them. https://heritagedeed.com/blog/what-are-surplus-funds
MLA
“What Are Surplus Funds? Excess Proceeds Lists by County and How to Search Them.” HeritageDeed, October 19, 2026, heritagedeed.com/blog/what-are-surplus-funds.
Link (HTML)
<a href="https://heritagedeed.com/blog/what-are-surplus-funds">What Are Surplus Funds? Excess Proceeds Lists by County and How to Search Them</a> (HeritageDeed)HeritageDeed provides public-record search reports only. Reports do not constitute title insurance, an attorney opinion of title, or a title insurance commitment.
