How to Organize Bills and Other Important Stuff

Did you know you’re supposed to keep seven years of tax filings? Yep, that’s right. Seven Years. Keep things organized and in the right place by using accordion folders to store each year’s tax return, along with supporting documents. As each year goes by, shred the return from eight years ago, and put the current year’s return in the accordion folder. A document box in a closet is a great place to store these, since you only touch them once a year.

Paperwork that needs to be filed once a year can be tricky. What month was it you renew your pet permit with the city? When are the car tags up for renewal? When does the renter's insurance expire? Keep those papers in a specific folder so you can always refer to them, and put the renew date on your calendar, including a reminder on your phone two weeks out so you can get that paperwork completed and mailed out on time. 

How often do you go to pay the bills and have to spend 15 minutes hunting down your checkbook, stamps and the bills? Avoid that by keeping everything in one centralized location, organized in a desktop organizer.

Now that you have legit “official documents,” it’s time to enter the world of fireproof document storage. Protect birth certificates, passports, deeds, heirloom jewelry, social security cards and so on in a fireproof chest, which you can find at big box stores or online. As a bonus, having all of those documents safely stored in once place eliminates that paralyzing moment of panic where you can’t remember where you stored your passport the night before a trip.