Florida Asset Recovery · Advocacy
In Florida,
Tax Deed Surplus
Has Always
Belonged to the
Former Owner.
That's You.
NOTICE (EU AI Act, Art. 50): The visuals and voice in this video were generated with artificial intelligence. No footage of an actual person was recorded. By Ana Larrubia, c/o Abraham and Associates Asset Recovery Services. Reviewed for accuracy.
These funds sit in county registries and state custody, often without the rightful owner ever discovering they exist. Florida Statute protects your right to claim them. The Abraham Recovery Method is a system we created to help you recover what's yours.
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Miami, Florida 33131
Understanding the Surplus
How a Tax Deed Surplus Comes to Exist
When a Florida property sells at a tax deed auction for more than the amount owed in back taxes, that difference, after the costs of the sale, is the tax deed surplus. It is real money sitting at the county with your name on it. Florida law is clear about whose money it is, and that law preserves your right to claim it.
The surplus belongs to the former owner
Under Florida law, a tax deed surplus belongs to the former property owner: the person who held title before the auction. That principle has been established in Florida since 1935 under Statute §197.582. The United States Supreme Court reaffirmed it nationally in 2023, ruling unanimously in Tyler v. Hennepin County that when the government sells a property to collect a debt, the former owner retains the right to any value above that debt. The surplus is yours by Florida statute and by the Takings Clause of the United States Constitution.
After the sale, the surplus is held in a county investment account during a defined holding period. The principal (your money) stays the same, while every dollar of interest and dividends generated during that period stays with the government. The longer your claim goes unfiled, the more the government earns from money that belongs to you. Florida law preserves your right to claim the principal, and that right remains open, but other parties with recorded debts against the property before the tax deed sale have their own filing windows. Any of those filings, made within the deadline, will affect the available balance.
The path to claiming what's yours
Filing a surplus claim is an option a former owner has the right to pursue on their own. What is obvious across these cases is that the process is usually more complicated than it appears: court hearings, documentation prepared to evidentiary standards, statutory deadlines that move whether you act or not, and coordination with other parties who may have stakes in the same funds. Most former owners choose to have professionals with experience do the work for them.
In practice, several elements stand between a former owner and the surplus that belongs to them. Other parties may have legal interest in the same funds. The claim itself must satisfy specific evidentiary and procedural requirements that vary by county. Each requires deliberate structure and attention to detail throughout the process.
That deliberate structure is the work the firm carries out, from the initial records search through the in-depth research, the partnership with Florida-licensed attorneys, and the defined process that carries a surplus claim through to final delivery. What follows is The Abraham Recovery Method, the system built precisely for this.
Our Process
The Abraham Recovery Method
Tax deed surplus recovery in Florida is statute-governed work, grounded in the applicable Florida Statutes, the Florida Constitution, and the Takings Clause, affirmed in Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023). The Abraham Recovery Method translates that foundation into a clear three-step process. The work is done under power of attorney, and your role as the former owner stays at the center of every stage.
Verify
We confirm the surplus exists, establish your standing as the former owner under Florida statute, and assemble the documentation a successful claim requires. This research is performed by the firm; the conclusions are reviewed before any representation begins.
File
Our Florida-licensed attorney partners file your claim under power of attorney with the necessary documentation. You remain the named claimant. Court protocol, statutory deadlines, procedural requirements, and communication with all parties are handled inside the firm's structure.
Deliver
When the court issues the order, the surplus is released through escrow and paid directly to you. The recovery is complete. You receive what was always yours.
What Recovery Involves
Three Realities Shape Every Florida Surplus Claim.
Each one has its own timeline, its own documentation, and its own moment to act.
Competing Claims
Subordinate lienholders, federal and state tax claims, and mortgage creditors may have legal interest in the same surplus. The firm researches the record to establish the priority order and secure what is rightfully yours.
Court-Ready Documentation
Florida courts hold surplus claims to precise standards. The firm prepares each claim to meet them from the start, so it moves cleanly through review and holds its place in the court's calendar.
Statutory Deadlines
Florida statute sets a specific window for surplus recovery from the auction date. The firm files within that window to keep your equity in your own name.
Our team carries the full weight of the recovery, from records search through final disbursement.
Frequently Asked
Common Questions, Direct Answers
The questions below come up most often when a former owner is considering whether to proceed.
Each answer reflects how the firm handles that concern in practice.
Am I really entitled to this money?
Florida law and the United States Supreme Court agree that the tax deed surplus belongs to the former owner. Florida statute establishes this right at the state level. At the federal level, the issue reached the Supreme Court in Tyler v. Hennepin County, decided in 2023. The case centered on Geraldine Tyler. Geraldine, a 94-year-old Minnesota woman, saw her home seized and sold by her county for $40,000 to cover $15,000 in back property taxes. The county kept the full sale price, including the surplus that belonged to her. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously in her favor, and in favor of every former owner in the same situation, holding that the surplus belongs to the former owner as a constitutional principle under the Takings Clause. If your name was on the title before the auction, the surplus is yours by Florida statute and by constitutional foundation.
How is the money being held right now?
After a tax deed sale, the county holds the surplus in an interest-bearing account for a defined period. The interest and dividends generated during that period stay with the government, not the claimant. If the period passes before a claim is filed, the surplus transfers to state custody, where the State of Florida continues holding the surplus under the same dynamic. Your ownership of the principal, the surplus that belongs to you, remains intact. The practical question is when you want to proceed with recovery; there is no benefit in waiting.
What happens if I do nothing?
The surplus remains yours by law. Your right to claim it stands regardless of when you decide to act, and Florida preserves that right once the funds transfer to state custody. The practical question is whether you want to begin recovering it, and putting it to the use you see fit, or leave the funds in the hands of the government entities currently holding them. The government will hold them and continue investing them and profiting from them.
Why work with the firm rather than file the claim on my own?
The process carries questions of law and procedure, scheduling and appearance requirements, and competing interests from other parties with a legal stake in the same funds. The firm exists to carry out that work on your behalf, with the experience to handle the complications and the partnership with licensed attorneys the process often requires. Then there is the contrast between out-of-pocket upfront costs and our zero-upfront-cost fee structure, which guarantees you pay only when you receive your payment. Professionalism, together with experience and deferred payments, makes the firm the obvious choice.
How long does the process take?
Recovery timelines vary based on the specifics of the claim, the claim timeline, competing claims, whether the judge imposes additional requirements, and the county where the property was sold. We'll discuss this further after we review the specifics of your claim.
What if there are other claims to the same money?
It is common for other parties to have interest in the same funds. Government liens recorded before the tax deed sale, subordinate creditors, estate beneficiaries, and former co-owners can all hold legitimate stakes in the surplus. The firm's process begins with a verification step that identifies these parties and establishes where the former owner's claim sits relative to theirs. When competing claims exist, or can arise while the filing window for other parties remains open, the firm and its attorney partners work through the legal process to establish the former owner's entitlement.
What is required of me?
After the consultation and engagement, your role consists of signing the necessary documents, providing identification, and responding to occasional questions as they arise. Timely and complete communication on your part is an important factor in the firm's success, as we face deadlines we must meet. The path is designed for the firm to carry the procedural work, with you stepping in only where direct participation is necessary.
Starting the Process
Begin with a Conversation
Florida law and the United States Supreme Court have established that the surplus belongs to the former owner. The firm brings the knowledge and the partnership with licensed attorneys to make that ruling real. The system was built to be navigated by professionals. The firm navigates it on your behalf, so what belongs to you reaches your hands and supports what comes next: the family, the plans, the life you continue to build. The 15-minute consultation is when the firm and you decide together whether to proceed. Fifteen minutes, free of charge, plain answers. Reach us by phone or email below.