The other day we looked at some bill paying and mail organizing solutions.
Today, some tips to go along with your actual supplies.

I can’t say “paperless office” enough. The hands down best way to get your mail and bills under control is to sign up for email bills vs. paper. Currently, every single bill I have offers a paperless bill option. Even my rent can be paid online at this point. Paperless billing saves more than mail space, it also saves you money and time. Paying online makes checks almost totally pointless, saves ink, and saves stamps.
If you don’t trust online …read more

To kick off the year, I’ve been running a filing series. So far we’ve looked at:

Why Willy-Nilly Filing Systems Suck – Plan Ahead for the Best Filing System
What you should include in your filing system outline

Mistakes when making a filing system are common, especially if you’ve never set one up before. Here are some mistakes that will sink the typical filing system (which is why it’s good to plan).
Too few categories – such as putting bills, stocks, and employment info all together because they have money in common. You need to split categories up into more manageable chunks that make …read more

in the last post, Why Willy-Nilly Filing Systems Suck – Plan Ahead for the Best Filing System, I said I’d be back with a basic plan for what you should include in your filing system outline.
Here are some major categories you need to plan for:
Taxes – and if I were you, I’d plan to separate them by year.
Insurance:

Home or renters
Health (per person)
Dental (per person)
Auto (per car)

Medical records per person.
Receipts:

Repairs for home or car.
Health care costs.
Purchases.
Holiday – I always keep holiday receipts for a couple of months, just in case.

Banking – separated by account; also you can include credit card …read more

With the New Year right here upon us, you may have set a goal for finally getting those papers, brochures, and other important documents filed properly. You can get motivated, go nuts, and fast track a filing set-up, but the chances of it fulfilling all your filing needs, or lasting for the long-term, are slim.
The number one best thing you can do is make an outline BEFORE you set up your filing system. Why?
You likely have tons of various documents, warranties, and other important papers. If you’re going to be able to find them, they need to be filed in …read more

I’ve received some info about Pixily recently, a service that can help you create a clutter-free office (home or work). I went to check it out, and here are the facts:

You collect all your documents – you know the ones cluttering your desk.
You mail them to Pixily in their pre-paid envelopes – or scan and then fax or email your docs to Pixily (the second option is better IMO) can you imagine loosing all your docs in the mail?! All paper documents are mailed back to you though, and soon Pixily is introducing a  secure recycle service and you’d be …read more

Do you remember the AnywhereVault Giveaway that we had here back in July? Well, just wanted to let you know that if you were interested in a home inventory solution, but didn’t happen to win that giveaway, now is a good time to try AnywhereVault.

If you need a crash course reminder about this useful home inventory service read:

Anywhere Vault – One Home Inventory Solution
AnywhereVault – Digital Home Inventory Tips
AnywhereVault Review

New features and specials at AnywhereVault:

Quicker and easier home inventory creation, including backing up your important documents.
Currently the only online home inventory system that creates your inventory for you. …read more

There are lots of ways to cut paper clutter – from light tips to extreme paperless technology ideas. Here are 12 solutions that run from simple to the more complex – how each tip will apply to you, depends on how much you hate all that paper.
1. Pay all your bills online: And why not move all your banking activity to online while you’re at it.
2. Ban stickies: I know, some are super cute. But good lord those stickies add up. Once you get some, you get stickie mad and use them everywhere.
3. Ban scratch pads: Also come in many …read more

So far in my ongoing warranty series we’ve looked at…

Organize Your Warranty Information – What You Should Keep
File Drawer Storage for Warranty Information
Envelope Storage for Warranty Information

Now I’m going to tell you the WORST idea for organizing warranties. It can work I suppose, but it never worked for me.
The folder system. 
Grab all that warranty info you need to save, and separate each into one thick page protector in a three ring notebook. I used this method for a while actually. It was years ago, and I had all these extra notebooks. However, for me it was a disaster method.
Pros:

Easy and …read more

To follow up my create a home inventory post, I thought I’d do a quickie about what to include – in case your insurance co. forgot to give you a list.
Six things to note – no matter if you’re using a video camera, camera, or pad and pencil. Note, if you’re using a paper list and a media list, you only need all of this info on the paper list.

Item type: “kitchen microwave”
Item name brand: “GE Profile Spacemaker II Microwave Oven”
Item description: “White on black, counter top model, etc”
Item purchase date
Item serial and model number
Cost when purchased

This is one reason …read more

Why create a home inventory: Fires and thieves unfortunately do happen.
But I rent!: You can still make an inventory. I have renter’s insurance, and they asked for a simple list inventory, but I made a better digital camera inventory. You never know with those pesky insurance folks. No offense to any insurance folks, but believe me, I’ve has some challenges with a few, and you do want to be able to prove you have what you have.
Choices:
Notebook & camera: Use a notebook and write down everything of any monetary value. If you have renters or home insurance, they likely …read more