Use a filing system to help keep track of important documents
BLACKSBURG, Va., Jan. 18, 2007 - A filing system to keep track of all the records important to running a home and family can save time and money and maybe avoid problems. Gather your important records, track down the ones you're missing, throw away those you don't need, and file what's left so they can be found when you need them.
"Keeping financial records is important, and having an organized filing system so you can find them makes the records useful," said Celia Hayhoe, Virginia Cooperative Extension family resource management specialist at Virginia Tech and Certified Financial Counselor.
First, decide who will do the record keeping and where it will be done. Then set up a system for keeping things. Encourage all family members to save financial information, such as receipts and keep it in the files.
Use envelopes or file folders representing the different budget categories that are part of your household and family. Keep bank statements, canceled checks, charge card account records, guarantees, warranties, instruction books, and receipts. Store them in a box or filing cabinet.
Records, such as wills and letters of last instructions, should be kept permanently perhaps in a safe-deposit box rented at the local bank or savings institution. The rent usually ranges from $20 to $50 a year depending on the size of the box.
Some valuable records may be difficult to replace. Such records as adoption papers, car titles, birth certificates, marriage certificates, and contracts, should be kept in the safe-deposit box.
Some records may be discarded after several years. Tax information and receipts need to be kept three years, but Hayhoe added that it wouldnÕt hurt to be conservative and save them for six years. However, anything that relates to real estate, including your home and other investments, should be kept indefinitely.
Major purchase receipts, warranties, and home improvement expenses should be kept as long as you own the item or the house.
At the end of the record-keeping year, clear your current files. Throw away items that are no longer of any value, such as sales receipts for groceries. Move important papers to your permanent files where you keep things such as tax returns and important canceled checks.
Keep a record of the important items you carry with you: credit cards, driver's license, insurance card, and emergency information in case of an accident. In this way you will have an easier time reporting and replacing lost or stolen articles.
Contact the local Virginia Cooperative Extension agent for more suggestions about what household records to keep and where to keep them.
Contact: Michael Sutphin
Writer
Communications and Marketing
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Virginia Tech
(540) 231-6975
msutphin@vt.edu