What was left behind. Finding a decedent's assets in Washington.
What was left behind
A relative died. How do I find out what they owned?
Start with the state. Washington's unclaimed property program took in a record $503 million in fiscal 2025, holds it for owners and heirs forever, and is free to search at ucp.dor.wa.gov; search every name the person ever used, and check MissingMoney.com for other states. Then the King County Superior Court Clerk's portal for any probate already opened, the Recorder's name search for real property, and the Secretary of State for companies where the deceased was a governor. If there is no will, descent follows RCW 11.04.015; a small estate can often be collected by affidavit under chapter 11.62 RCW instead of a full probate. An estate with no heirs escheats to the state (chapter 11.08 RCW), which is a reason to look before the state does.
What can't an heir find alone?
Brokerage and retirement accounts, life insurance, safe-deposit boxes, foreign property and crypto leave almost no public trace. They turn up in the mail, the tax returns, the old statements and the memories of the people who knew the person, which is interview work, and through insurer and custodian locator services that want a death certificate and proof you have standing. Executors and probate lawyers retain us for exactly this inventory. So do heirs who suspect the inventory they were handed is short.
Settling an estate and not sure what it owns?
Executors, administrators and heirs instruct us to find what a decedent left behind: property in other counties and states, business interests, accounts, vehicles, vessels and unclaimed funds. Tell us the name, the dates and where the person lived. We will run a preliminary search, tell you what the record is likely to show, and quote a fixed price before we start.
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