I have discussed this issue many times over the years, but I still get calls from third-party surplus recovery companies who want to hire me. I do not work with these companies and I will tell you exactly why. Mainly it is because if I work for one of these companies, I no longer work for you, the actual owner.
If you sign on with a third-party surplus recovery company for them to help you retrieve your Florida Foreclosure Surplus Funds, you are signing over all of your rights to those funds to them. You no longer have a say in what goes on. They can then either try to get the funds for you, or they can hire an attorney to do it for them. Either way, you aren’t represented any longer, the third-party recovery company is.
Florida Statute 45.033(3) states, “A voluntary transfer or assignment shall be a transfer or assignment qualified under this subsection, thereby entitling the transferee or assignee to the surplus funds or a portion or percentage of the surplus funds.” This means you are signing over your rights to them. Of course, the assignment must be in writing and follow specific guidelines laid out in the statute in order for the assignment to be valid. Just understand that this can be very risky. You never know who these third-party companies are. They might be fraudulent, and they might disappear as soon as they have obtained your money from the court. I am not saying that all of these companies are like this, but do you really want to take the chance?
You should also know that if you have signed up with one of these third-party surplus companies, the agreement you signed must comply with every part of the statute. If it doesn’t, then you might be able to get out of the agreement. I have worked with clients in the past who found out that the surplus recovery company they signed up with really wasn’t working in their best interests and wanted out of the agreement. I went to court on their behalf and had the agreement thrown out because it didn’t comply with every part of the statute. It is extremely important to know and understand the law.
When I take on a Florida Foreclosure Surplus Funds case, I represent the person. As an attorney, I am required to follow the laws. I am also required to follow the code of ethics laid out by the Florid Bar and the Supreme Court of Florida. You won’t get the same guarantee from a third-party surplus company. Additionally, I know and understand the law to a much greater extent than these third-party surplus companies do. This means that if there is any sort of contention with the case, such as subordinate lienholders who want some of the surplus, I can use the law to help my clients get the most out of their Florida Foreclosure Surplus Funds. You won’t get that same sort of hard work from a third-party surplus company.
Just remember, I work for you. These other companies work for themselves because in order for them to get your Florida Foreclosure Surplus Funds, you have to sign over your rights to them. You will never sign over your rights to me. I represent you and I will work hard to make sure you get the maximum Florida Foreclosure Surplus Funds you have coming to you.
If you believe you have Florida Foreclosure Surplus or Tax Deed Surplus Funds coming to you from the sale of a property that you owned or a deceased member of your family owned, please give me a call for a free consultation. I handle Foreclosure Surplus and Tax Deed Surplus cases in every County in the State of Florida, and I don’t get paid unless you do.