Welcome to www.OnlineOrganizing.com -- A World Of Organizing Solutions Your Order Your Shopping Cart About Us Contact Us Site Map
Do You Need Help Getting Organized?Shop For Organizing And Business Development ProductsProfessional Organizing ServicesFind A Seminar, Workshop, Or Keynote SpeakerRead Our Two Free Monthly NewslettersFree Organizing Tips And AdviceResources For Professional OrganizersLearn How To Become A Professional OrganizerUseful Organizing Website LinksUseful Organizing Website Links


Search for:

Category:

You Are Here: Home - Blogs

NEW! - Keywords For This Page:   Clutter - Document Destruction - Information Management - Archiving - Recycling - Filing - Getting Rid Of - Paper

Blog: The Simplified Home
February is Archive Your Files Month



What's the shape of your home filing system? Are your filing drawers stuffed so full that it's nearly impossible to get another piece of paper into – or out of – them? This is sure to create additional piles around your file cabinet(s) because its such an inconvenience to get the filing done.
Once a year, you should schedule time to review your files and purge as much as possible, leaving room for next year's papers. Consider these tips for maintaining a lean and accessible home filing system.
 
DETERMINE WHAT TO KEEP
As you sort through papers, ask yourself, "When will I really need this again?" "Can it be easily recreated or retrieved elsewhere?' Don't hang onto things unless you have a really good reason! Be ruthless – remember, 80% of the things you file will need get referred to again!
 
KEEP RECORDS RETENTION GUIDELINES IN MIND 
Your accountant, attorney, or professional organizer can tell you which documents you should keep for legal and tax purposes. Think in terms of what you would need to have to support your tax return. If there is no tax implication for a piece of paper on a current or past tax return, there is likely no purpose to hold onto the paper. 
 
SOME PAPERS CAN BE IMMEDIATELY TOSSED
Instruction manuals for products you no longer own, old research materials, previous drafts of letters, out-of-date magazine and articles, and receipts for items past their return date can be discarded.
 
STASH IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS IN A SAFETY DEPOSIT BOX or HOME SAFE
It is imperative that you stock your safety deposit box or home safe with the following papers (originals):
  • adoption and citizenship papers
  • passports
  • birth, death, and marriage certificates
  • deeds
  • divorce decrees
  •  insurance policy papers
  • lease agreements and loan documents
  • mortgage papers
  • personal property appraisals (jewelry, collectibles)
  • Social Security cards
  • stock and bond certificates
  • vehicle titles
  • copies of wills and powers of attorney papers
And don't forget to LOCK your home safe each time you access it. Most home safe's are NOT fireproof if the lock is not engaged.
 
Setting up a home filing system can be a time-consuming chore, so I found a great ready-made filing system FILESOLUTIONS Home Filing System, that takes about an hour to set up, and it lasts a life-time. I'll soon do a detailed review of this product, but for now, here's more information about this essential ready-made filing system.

posted on: 2/8/2010 10:00:00 AM by Janet Nusbaum, The Organizing Genie
category: Homes


The Simplified Home: < Previous Post - Next Post >
Blog Central: < Previous Post - Next Post >



Discuss This Post



There are no comments.



Add a comment about this post:
Name:
Comment:
(Note: To reduce blogspam, HTML tags are not permitted in blog comments and will be removed)
Please Enter The Following Code:
In order to cut down on SPAM, we ask that you enter the code exactly as shown in image below. If you can't read the code, simply select "Load New Code" and a different graphic will appear. Cookies must be enabled on your web browser.
Code Image - Please contact webmaster if you have problems seeing this image code Load New Code
Powered by Web Wiz CAPTCHA version 2.01
Copyright ©2005-2006 Web Wiz

 



The Simplified Home


by Janet Nusbaum, The Organizing Genie

View This Blog

   Subscribe To This Blog

About Janet:

Janet Nusbaum creates calm out of chaos, and loves bringing serenity and order to overwhelmed households, cluttered offices, frazzled parents, and transitioning seniors and families. Janet, President of Simplified Spaces & The Simplified Home, is an Organizing Consultant, Senior Move Manager, Author and Speaker.

She is the author of "Mom, Can I Help Around the House?" A Simple, Step-by-Step System for Teaching Your Children Life-Long Skills for Pitching-In & Picking-up".

She is a proud member: National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO) & National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization (NSGCD)

Visit our blog - www.TheOrganizingGenie.com, and sign-up to receive our special report "SHELF LIFE OF 75 COMMON HOUSEHOLD ITEMS. Use this report to decide what to keep and what to toss ... then TAKE ACTION!!

Janet's Other Blogs:


Janet's Favorites:



Add this page to your Bookmarks!

E-mail this page to a friend!







www.OnlineOrganizing.com is a service mark of Bradford, LLC.
Content on this site is © Bradford, LLC, All rights reserved.

If you notice any problems with this site, please contact our webmaster.
And if you don't see what you need you are welcome to "ask the organizer" any question!

To see what people are saying about www.OnlineOrganizing.com, check out our visitor comments.

Click here to view our privacy policy.

Calendar Of Organizing Holidays And Events Blog Central Sign Up For Our Free Online Newsletters Join The Conversation At Our Organizing Discussion Board Advertise Your Company On Our Website Be An Affiliate Of www.OnlineOrganizing.com
Check Us Out On FaceBook