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Surplus funds in Colorado.

When a property in Colorado sells at a tax sale or a foreclosure sale for more than what was owed, the extra can belong to the former owner. Here is who holds it, the law behind it, and every county office linked so you can check for yourself, free.

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Foreclosure sales here

Both judicial and non-judicial.

Our fee here

We don't offer paid help in Colorado. You can claim surplus here yourself, free; see below.

Tax sale surplus

Treasurer's-deed overbids under a law rewritten in 2026 (SB26-144, effective June 1, 2026; now C.R.S. §39-11.5-112). The county treasurer holds an unclaimed overbid of $25 or more for two years from the auction, then sends it to the State Treasurer as unclaimed property; overbids under $25 not claimed within six months go to the county. Once transferred, a recovery agreement is enforceable if the fee is 10% or less and it is signed at least two years after the transfer. Separately, Colorado mortgage and deed-of-trust foreclosure overbids are governed by C.R.S. §38-38-111, which makes fee agreements to recover them unenforceable while the public trustee holds the funds and makes inducing someone to sign one a class 2 misdemeanor; we take no Colorado foreclosure overbid work. Colorado tax-overbid matters are reviewed by Colorado counsel before we take them.

Foreclosure surplus

Foreclosure type
Both
Who holds the surplus

The county public trustee for deed-of-trust foreclosures. For sheriff (judicial) sales, all proceeds go into the court registry.

The overbid is first applied to any deficiency, then held until all redemption periods end, then paid to junior lienors who filed a notice of intent to redeem, and the rest to the borrower; the public trustee must mail the borrower a notice within 30 days after redemption periods end (C.R.S. 38-38-111(1)-(2.5)). The borrower claims directly with the public trustee. Effective July 1, 2026 (HB26-1098), the public trustee holds an unclaimed overbid for two years from the sale (previously six months), then sends amounts of $25 or more to the State Treasurer's unclaimed property program; overbids over $500 must also be published in a newspaper.

Fees and assignments. C.R.S. 38-38-111(2.5)(c): an agreement to pay compensation to recover, or help recover, an overbid owed to the borrower by the public trustee is not enforceable, and inducing or trying to induce someone to sign one is a class 2 misdemeanor. Once the overbid has gone to the State Treasurer, C.R.S. 38-13-1304 applies: the agreement is unenforceable unless signed at least two years after the transfer, must be written and signed by the owner, describe the property, sale date and services, state the owner can claim free from the State Treasurer, and the fee may not exceed 20% (2-3 years after transfer) or 30% (more than 3 years); inducing a noncompliant agreement is a class 2 misdemeanor. No specific rule found for sheriff-sale money in the court registry.

Published surplus lists

These official Colorado pages publish lists or lookups of unclaimed surplus or excess proceeds. If your name or parcel appears, the office that runs the list can tell you how to claim, free.

Lists change often and may be out of date. Checked October 2026.

Claiming it yourself

We don't offer paid help in Colorado. You can claim surplus here yourself, free.

See the free self-filing steps →

Every Colorado county office(64)

Surplus is public record. Call the office that held the sale with the parcel or case number; in most places it will confirm whether a surplus exists, how much, and the deadline. Self-filing is free. Each entry links the county's tax office and court clerk where the directory lists them, plus the full set of county offices.

Each dot is a county below. Pick one from the list to see it up close.© OpenStreetMap contributors

Check this yourself

This page is plain-language orientation, not legal advice. Statutes were checked against official sources in October 2026, and county links come from the NETR public-records directory, an independent resource. Laws and county procedures change, so confirm with the office before you rely on any of it. You can always file a claim yourself with no recovery fee (a court or notary may charge a small fee).