How to claim foreclosure surplus funds in Colorado

How to claim surplus funds in Colorado

1. The public trustee holds the overbid

   From the sale until redemption periods end

   The overbid is first applied to any deficiency shown in the lender's bid, then held in escrow by the county public trustee until all lienholder redemption periods end.

   C.R.S. § 38-38-111(1)

2. Junior lienholders are paid first

   After redemption periods end

   Junior lienholders who filed a notice of intent to redeem are paid in order of recording priority, up to what they are owed plus fees. A lienholder who did not file that notice, or whose lien was recorded after the notice of election and demand, gets nothing from the overbid. What is left is paid to the borrower.

   C.R.S. § 38-38-111(2), (6)

3. Watch for the notice and claim

   Notice within 30 days after redemption periods end

   If $25 or more is left for you, the public trustee must try to find your current address and mail you a notice within 30 days after the redemption periods end. Public trustee websites must tell borrowers to contact the office after the sale. Call or write the public trustee in the county where the home was sold and keep your address current.

   C.R.S. § 38-38-111(2.5)(a), (b)

4. Do not pay anyone to recover it

   An agreement to pay someone to recover or help recover your overbid from the public trustee is not enforceable, and a person who tries to get you to sign one commits a class 2 misdemeanor. You do not need a paid helper to claim it.

   C.R.S. § 38-38-111(2.5)(c)

5. Unclaimed money goes to the State Treasurer

   After 2 years ($25 or more); 6 months (under $25)

   Overbids under $25 not claimed within six months go to the county. Amounts of $25 or more not claimed within two years go to the State Treasurer's Great Colorado Payback, which holds them until claimed; if more than $500 is unclaimed, the public trustee must publish a notice. A finder agreement for money already at the State Treasurer is enforceable only if signed at least two years after the transfer, and the fee cannot exceed 10 percent.

   C.R.S. §§ 38-38-111(3), 38-13-1304

6. Sheriff's sales go through the court

   If your home was sold in a court foreclosure by the sheriff instead of by the public trustee, all of the sale proceeds are deposited into the court registry. Ask the court that handled the case how to claim any surplus.

   C.R.S. § 38-38-111(3)(a)(I)

7. Overbid after a property tax auction

   Notice within 30 days after the claim period

   If your home was sold at a treasurer's deed auction for unpaid property taxes, the county treasurer, not the public trustee, holds the overbid. See our Colorado property tax foreclosure page for how that works.

   C.R.S. § 39-11.5-112

What Colorado law says about leftover sale money

Common questions in Colorado