Florida Asset Recovery · Advocacy
In Florida,
Tax Deed Surplus
Has Always
Belonged to the
Former Owner.
That's You.
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.
Claim What's YoursFree 15-minute consultation. Confidential.
848 Brickell Avenue, PH 5
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 settled in Florida since 1935 under Statute §197.582. The U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed it nationally in 2023, ruling unanimously in Tyler v. Hennepin County that when a government sells property to satisfy a debt, the former owner keeps the right to whatever value remains above that debt. The surplus is yours by Florida statute and by the Takings Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
After the sale, the surplus sits in a county investment account during a defined holding period. The principal (your money) stays the same, while every dollar of interest and dividends earned during that window stays with the government. The longer your claim sits unfiled, the more the government earns on money that belongs to you. Florida law preserves your right to claim the principal, and that right remains open, but other parties with claims recorded against the property before the tax deed sale have their own filing windows. Any of those filings timely filed 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 becomes 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 do or not, and coordination with other parties who may have stakes in the same funds. Most former owners choose to have professionals with expertise do the work for them.
In practice, several things 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 does, from the initial records search through the deeper research, the partnership with Florida-licensed attorneys, and the defined process that carries a surplus claim all the way through to delivery. What follows is The Abraham Recovery Method, the framework built for exactly that.
Our Process
The Abraham Recovery Method
Florida tax deed surplus recovery is statute-driven work, grounded in applicable Florida Statutes, the Florida Constitution, and the Takings Clause as affirmed in Tyler v. Hennepin County (2023). The Abraham Recovery Method translates that foundation into a clear three-step process. The work is handled 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 partnered Florida-licensed attorneys will 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 order issues, 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
Junior lienholders, federal and state tax claims, and mortgage lenders may all have standing against 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 docket.
Statutory Deadlines
Florida statute sets a specific window for surplus recovery from the date of sale. The firm files within that window to keep your equity in your own name.
Our team carries the full arc of the recovery, from records search through final disbursement.
Frequently Asked
Common Questions, Direct Answers
The questions below come up most often when former owners are deciding whether to engage.
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 a tax deed surplus belongs to the former property owner. Florida statute establishes the right at the state level. At the federal level, the matter 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 had her home seized and sold by her county for $40,000 to cover $15,000 in unpaid 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 standing in the same position, holding that the surplus belongs to the former owner as a matter of 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 standing.
How is the money being held right now?
After a tax deed auction, the county holds the surplus in an interest-bearing account for a defined window. The interest and dividends earned during that period stay with the government, not with the claimant. If the holding window passes before a claim is filed, the surplus transfers to state custody, where the State of Florida continues to hold the surplus under the same dynamic. Your ownership of the principal, the surplus that belongs to you, stays intact. The practical question is when you want to proceed with recovery; there is no financial benefit to waiting.
What happens if I do nothing?
The surplus remains yours by law. Your right to claim it stands regardless of when you choose to act, and Florida preserves that right once the funds transfer to state custody. The practical question is whether you would like to begin recovering it, and put it to use as you see fit, or leave the funds in the hands of the government entities that currently hold them. The government will keep and continue to invest and profit from it.
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 that the process often requires. Then there's upfront out of pocket costs versus our zero upfront costs fee structure, which guarantees you pay only when you receive your payment. Professionalism together with expertise 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, if the judge imposes additional requirements, and the county where the property was sold. We'll discuss this further with you after we review the specifics of your claim.
What if other parties claim the same money?
Other interests in the same funds are common. Government liens recorded before the tax deed sale, junior 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. Where competing claims exist, or may emerge while the filing window for other parties remains open, the firm and its partnering attorneys work through the legal process to establish the former owner's entitlement.
What is required of me?
After the consultation and engagement, your role is to sign the required documents, provide identification, and respond to occasional questions as they arise. Timely and complete communication from you is a major factor in the firm's success, as we face deadlines that we have to abide by. The path is designed so the firm carries the procedural work, with you stepping in only where direct participation is essential.
Starting the Process
Begin with a Conversation
Florida law and the United States Supreme Court have both ruled the surplus belongs to the former owner. The firm provides the knowledge and the partnership with licensed attorneys to bring that ruling home. The system was built to be walked by professionals. The firm walks it on your behalf, so what is owed 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 how the firm and the visitor decide together whether to engage. Fifteen minutes, free of charge, plain answers. Reach out by phone or email below.