Alameda County Probate Estates Held by the State Controller

• Alameda County probate estates still claimable from the State Controller total $564,406,243 across 606,319 estates.
• 6,882 of those estates are worth $10,000 or more.
• There is no deadline to claim, except for estates that have already permanently escheated to the State.
• The 10 per cent fee cap in state law applies to property reported under §1530, not to county-probated estates.
• A recovery agreement must be in writing, disclose the property's value, and cannot require payment before the Controller pays the claim.

How much Alameda County probate money is still unclaimed?

Our index currently tracks 606,319 claimable probate estates that originated in Alameda County, holding a combined $564,406,243. Of those, 6,882 individual estates are valued at $10,000 or more, meaning the money left behind is not always small. These figures come from our own indexing of State Controller records and reflect only what remains claimable now; estates that have already passed to the State permanently are not counted.

For scale, this sits within a much larger picture. Across all California counties we index 14,613,528 property records and 37,166 probate estates in total, of which 4,438 remain claimable statewide. Alameda County’s volume is a meaningful share of that picture, which is one reason we built a dedicated search for it.

How does a probate estate end up with the State Controller?

When a person dies and their estate goes through probate in Alameda County Superior Court, the court oversees distribution of assets to heirs or beneficiaries. If money is left over after that process, is unclaimed, or cannot be delivered, the county remits it to the State Controller under the Probate Code rather than under the standard holder-reporting statute that covers bank accounts and insurance proceeds.

This distinction matters. Estates that reach the State through county probate are treated differently from ordinary unclaimed property, both in how the State tracks them and in what a recovery firm may charge to help recover them. We keep a separate index for probate estates for this reason; you can read more at probate estates and the second State file.

Is there a deadline to claim an Alameda County estate?

No. California places no deadline on claiming unclaimed property, and that includes probate estates held by the State Controller. The money is held indefinitely until claimed by the rightful owner or their heirs. The one exception is an estate that has been permanently escheated, meaning the State has already taken final title; in that narrow circumstance, no claim will be paid, and we will not describe such an estate as recoverable.

If you are unsure whether a particular estate is still open or has escheated, that is exactly what a search of current records will tell you before you spend any time on paperwork.

Does the 10 per cent fee cap apply to probate estates?

No, and this is a common point of confusion. California law caps recovery fees at 10 per cent of the property recovered, but that cap applies specifically to property reported under Code of Civil Procedure §1530, such as dormant bank accounts and uncashed checks. Estates that reach the State through county probate arrive under the Probate Code instead, and the State Controller states there are no fee restrictions for investigators filing on behalf of the owners or heirs of county-probated estates.

California Unclaimed Property Services is a private firm, not the State Controller’s Office, and we are not affiliated with or endorsed by it. Our standard fee is a percentage of what is actually recovered, and we charge nothing if nothing is recovered. No fee may be collected before the Controller approves the claim and pays the owner, and any agreement we ask you to sign must be in writing, disclose the nature and value of the property, and state where the Controller holds it. You may challenge an agreement at any time if you believe the consideration was excessive or unjust. For the full legal detail, see what the law says about finder fees.

What documents does a claim on a probate estate need?

Requirements depend on the value and type of the claim. Cash claims of $1,000 or more must be notarized, and all securities claims and safe deposit box claims must be notarized regardless of value. A California notary may charge at most $15 per signature for an acknowledgment and $15 for a jurat, so notarization itself is a modest cost but not one to overlook when budgeting your own time and paperwork.

Beyond notarization, claims on estates typically require proof of identity, proof of your relationship to the decedent, and, where an estate went through formal probate, references to the probate case. We walk through exactly what is needed at what documents the State needs and at claiming as an heir or executor.

How do I find out if my relative's estate is on the list?

The most direct step is to search by name. Our index draws on the State Controller’s published Estates of Deceased Persons File, which lists the decedent, the heirs on record, the county, the probate case number, and the remaining balance, refreshed twice a year on the first business day of April and October. A match does not guarantee a straightforward claim, and some estates carry complications, such as multiple heirs or disputed entitlement, that are properly a matter for an attorney rather than for us.

If you find a listing and would rather not handle the notarization, documentation, and correspondence with the Controller yourself, that is the work we do. Start with a search here, or go straight to our full-service recovery if you already know the estate is listed under your relative’s name.

Questions People Ask

Figures on this page are from our copy of the State Controller’s published file as it stood on 5 October 2026. The State republishes the file weekly, so current totals will differ. Search is always against the latest copy.