Asset Location · Identification · Documentation
A licensed firm whose only job is locating what someone owns.
Asset locator services exist for a single reason: turning an open question — what does this person or company actually hold — into a documented answer. Empire has done that work for attorneys, creditors, executors, and private clients since 1982.
What Asset Locator Services Are
Identification, documentation, reporting.
Asset locator services are the structured work of finding, verifying, and documenting what a subject owns or controls. The locator's job is not to interpret legal strategy or to render legal opinions — it is to deliver a sourced inventory: real property, vehicles, business interests, accounts where lawfully identifiable, and the ownership relationships that connect them. That inventory is what counsel, executors, and creditors then act on.
Empire approaches asset location with three commitments. First, every finding is source-cited — a deed image, a UCC filing, a corporation commission entry, a court docket — so the report is usable in the underlying decision. Second, every method is lawful — no pretexting, no protected-data shortcuts. Third, the report is honest — assets we can identify are reported as identified; indicators that did not confirm are reported as leads, not findings. That distinction is what holds up in deposition and on the record.
What an asset locator is not: a database vendor delivering a printout, a discount agency promising bank account numbers in 48 hours, or a consumer-grade people-search service. The work that holds up for a forty-four-year client base is methodical, licensed, and source-driven.
When Asset Locator Services Are Engaged
The decisions the inventory feeds.
01
Litigation strategy
Counsel deciding whether to file, settle, or escalate needs to know what the opposing party actually owns before committing client resources.
02
Judgment recovery
Creditors with a judgment in hand need a structured asset picture to support execution, garnishment, and lien filings.
03
Estate administration
Executors and probate counsel reconstructing a decedent's holdings need a documented inventory for the probate file.
04
Family law
High-asset divorces and post-divorce enforcement matters where the disclosed inventory does not match the visible lifestyle.
05
Credit and lending decisions
Commercial creditors, lenders, and credit committees making decisions outside routine bureau-based analysis.
06
M&A and partnership due diligence
Buyers and partners stress-testing seller representations against public-record reality before committing.
What An Asset Locator Documents
The categories that drive downstream decisions.
Real Property
Recorded ownership, transfers, mortgages, and parcel-level records across counties and states relevant to the subject.
Business Interests
Operating entities, holding companies, partnerships, and assumed names — including the relationships between them.
Vehicles, Vessels, Aircraft
Titled assets identifiable through state DMV equivalents and federal aviation and maritime registries.
Likely Financial Institutions
Indicators of where the subject holds accounts, surfaced through lawful public-record review for use in counsel-issued subpoena work.
Judgments, Liens, UCCs
Civil judgments, federal and state tax liens, UCC-1 filings, and other financial-pressure indicators.
Beneficial Ownership Patterns
Affiliations between the subject and related entities, addresses, registered agents, and counterparties that clarify actual control.
Our Process
How the work moves.
01
Consultation and scope
We confirm the underlying decision the inventory will support, identify the relevant jurisdictions and subjects, and quote a flat or capped fee for the work.
02
Records discovery
Real property recorders, business entity filings, court systems, tax-lien indexes, UCC filings, and licensed information platforms — all worked methodically and dated.
03
Cross-reference and verification
Findings are deduplicated, cross-referenced across jurisdictions, and verified against secondary sources where required.
04
Written inventory report
A structured inventory delivered with source exhibits and a summary keyed to the underlying decision. Briefings by phone or in person where helpful.
Frequently Asked
Questions before the call.
What's the difference between an asset locator and an asset investigator?
The terms overlap. Locator services emphasize identification and documentation of what a subject holds. Investigation services often add concealment analysis, transfer-pattern review, and litigation support. Empire's engagements typically include both, scoped to the matter.
Can you find someone's bank accounts?
Lawfully, we identify likely account-holding institutions through public-record indicators for counsel to use in subpoena work. We do not pretext banks. See our Bank Account Search page for the full methodology.
How long does an asset locate take?
Most single-subject engagements deliver in 10 to 20 business days. Multi-subject, multi-jurisdiction, or business-owner investigations run longer and are scoped accordingly.
How much does it cost?
Most engagements are flat or capped fees, quoted during the consultation based on subject count, jurisdictions, and depth of work required.
Can findings be used in court?
Yes. Findings are source-cited and structured for counsel use in motions, depositions, and enforcement filings. Empire investigators have testified to source-cited findings when called.
Will the subject be notified?
No. Asset locator work is records-based and confidential. The subject is not contacted, surveilled, or notified as part of the locate itself.
Empire performs asset locator services through lawful public records, court filings, business registrations, and licensed information platforms operated within their permissible-purpose categories. We do not pretext, do not promise specific findings, and do not access protected consumer data outside permissible categories under federal law.
Related Asset Investigations
Back to asset investigationsConfidential Asset Review
Start with what the records actually show.
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Prefer to call? (800) 860-6068 · Licensed · Bonded · Established 1982