U.S. savings bond recovery for estates

The bonds in that drawer stopped earning years ago.

Millions of families hold matured U.S. savings bonds that quietly quit paying interest — many worth several times their face value, all losing ground to inflation while they sit. Photograph what you found. We identify every bond, value it, prepare the exact Treasury paperwork, and get the money moving again.

See plain pricing

Built for executors, heirs, and anyone sorting a parent's papers. No account needed to check.

$25B+
in matured, unredeemed U.S. savings bonds held by the federal government
30–40 yrs
of interest already earned — then frozen. Value doesn't grow another cent.
$0 upfront
to find out what a shoebox is worth. You approve everything before we file.
How it works

Hand us the disorganized version. That's the point.

Loose bonds, mixed series, some names crossed out, a few probably missing — that's every estate we see. The process is four steps in a fixed order, and we do the hard three.

STEP 1

Photograph everything

Snap every bond, both sides, in any order. Kitchen-table lighting is fine. No bonds in hand? We can search Treasury records instead.

STEP 2

We read & value each one

We identify series, issue date, and registration on every bond and calculate its exact redemption value today — then show you the total before anything is filed.

STEP 3

We prepare the packet

The right Treasury forms for your exact situation — survivor, small estate, or court-appointed representative — pre-filled, with a checklist for the one signature that must be certified at a bank.

STEP 4

Treasury pays you

The packet goes to Treasury Retail Securities with tracking. We monitor processing and fix any bounce-backs. Funds go directly to you or the estate — never to us.

Why we do this

Someone set aside grocery money for you.

Most of these bonds were bought $18.75 at a time — a war-drive pledge, a payroll deduction at the plant, a grandparent's habit at the bank window. They were bought by a generation that saved so the people after them would have it easier. We did.

I started Inkwell because I was born in the late 1970s into the easy American life that generation paid for, and because $29 billion of what they set aside is still sitting uncollected. Finishing those transactions — getting the money to the families it was always meant for — feels like the least we owe them.

— [Founder name], Nebraska
Sorting a box of papers you can't face alone? For Nebraska families, we'll sit down at the kitchen table with you. Just call.

Pricing

One number: 10%. Paid after you're paid.

Whether you're photographing a shoebox or asking us to search Treasury's records for bonds nobody can find — the deal is the same.

Every recovery

10% of what's recovered

10%
$149 minimum per estate · $0 if nothing is found or recovered
  • Every bond identified and valued free — you see the exact total, and your exact fee, before anything is filed
  • Covers found bonds, Treasury records searches for missing ones, and the optional federal sweep (HUD refunds, unclaimed pensions)
  • All forms prepared and checked for the mismatches that cause rejections; certified-signature checklist included
  • Prepaid, tracked mailer to Treasury — we watch every scan so you never wonder where the packet is
  • Treasury pays you or the estate directly. Your fee is based on the calculated redemption value we showed you upfront, charged only after Treasury's processing window

Straight answer on fees: government agencies will process these claims for free if you do all the paperwork yourself, and we'll never tell you otherwise. Our fee is for doing it correctly, completely, and fast — including the parts that bounce back when done wrong. Larger estates: ask about our flat-fee option when your valuation arrives.

Questions people actually ask

The fine print, in plain print.

How can a $100 bond be worth $600+?
Older Series E bonds earned compound interest for 30–40 years before maturing. A $100 face-value bond from the 1960s commonly redeems for several hundred dollars. The catch: growth stopped at final maturity — the value is frozen until redeemed.
The owner has passed away. Can we still cash them?
Yes — this is most of what we do. The path depends on what's printed on the bond and the estate's situation: a surviving co-owner or beneficiary can claim directly; smaller estates can often use Treasury's no-probate procedure; court-administered estates use the representative's appointment papers. Our questionnaire sorts this in about two minutes.
What if we think bonds existed but can't find them?
Treasury keeps records. Matured-bond information is now shared with state unclaimed-property programs, which we sweep for the owner\u2019s name. For older bonds, a records claim can be filed with Treasury using details like the owner\u2019s employers and approximate purchase years — payroll savings plans left a paper trail. These searches are our pay-only-if-we-find service.
Is this legitimate? It sounds too easy.
Healthy question. Verify everything we say for free: Treasury's own site (treasurydirect.gov) documents matured unredeemed bonds and every form we prepare. Money is always paid by the U.S. Treasury directly to you or the estate — it never touches our accounts. We charge for preparation, accuracy, and follow-through, and you can do it yourself at no cost if you prefer.
How and when do you actually charge the 10%?
Before anything is filed, we show you each bond's exact redemption value from Treasury's published tables — so your fee is a known dollar amount from day one, not a percentage of a mystery. A card is authorized when you approve the filing and charged only after Treasury's standard processing window has passed. If Treasury rejects or reduces a claim, send us the notice and we adjust or cancel the fee — and fix the claim.
Are you a law firm?
No. Inkwell is a document-preparation and research service. We prepare government forms at your direction and don't give legal advice. Estates over $100,000 in Treasury securities require court administration — for those we work alongside your probate attorney, or refer you to one.
Why "Inkwell Diligence"?
Inkwell, because that's how these bonds began — signed in ink at a kitchen table or a bank counter, many during the war-bond drives of the 1940s. Someone in your family dipped a pen and set money aside for the people who'd come after them. Diligence, because finishing what they started takes exactly that: every record checked, every form correct, everything documented. We're Nebraska-based, and your family's papers are used only to prepare your claim — never sold, never shared.
What happens to the documents I upload?
Death certificates and IDs are sensitive, and we treat them that way: encrypted in transit and at rest, used only to prepare your claim, and deleted on your request once the claim is complete. We never sell or share your information.
For estate professionals

Attorneys, fiduciaries & trust departments: hand us the bond work.

Savings-bond redemption is slow, form-heavy, and a poor use of billable hours. We prepare complete, checked Treasury packets for your matters at a flat per-estate rate — you bill your client however you normally do. Volume rate card on request.

Request the rate card

Ten minutes now. Decades of interest recovered.

Find the envelope. Take the photos. See the number.