Paper Overload? What to File, What to Digitize, and What to Shred or Recycle

Paper. It’s one of the things we just can’t live without, though most of us try to minimize our use of it, and recycle or shred what we can. The U.S. Mail brings us an excess of paper daily, most of it junk. When any major life event happens—marriage or divorce, purchasing or selling a home, starting a business—there will be a small mountain of paperwork to contend with. And when tax season rolls around, the paper pile-up is inevitable, especially if you’ve got a complicated tax situation requiring receipts and forms. Should you keep all this paperwork in a giant file cabinet, or can some things be digitized or shredded? Our guide will help you begin the process of lightening your paper load.

paperwork, recycling, shredding

When to Update Your Last Will and Testament

Do you have a Last Will and Testament? Excellent! It is an essential part of your estate plan, and will make things clearer and easier for those you leave behind. “I’m not rich, I don’t have an estate, so I don’t need a will,” you might think. An “estate” in this situation is considered as, “a person’s belongings, physical and intangible assets, land and real estate, investments, collectibles, and furnishings.” You don’t need to be a bazillionaire to have an estate.

Wills

Check These Annually: Your Credit Report, Social Security, and Social Media Privacy

There are many things we should all check periodically, but this article will focus on the three biggies you should definitely check on an annual basis.

credit report

Step-by-Step Guide to Organizing Your Photos

Remember when we used film in our cameras? (Kids now: “How retro!”) We had a finite number of photos to take: 24 or 36. There was work to be done before you could see those pictures. A trip to the Fotomat or Pay & Save, then later, Costco, to drop off the film. Days later, you’d go again to pick up the photos and the negatives. I recall being so excited to see the pictures from a family vacation, or birthday party, or holiday! Out of that 24- or 36-roll, you’d get a handful of really good ones (or at least, good enough for the photo album). The rest went back in the envelope and got put in the shoebox with the other photo envelopes.

home organizing, photos

Step-by-Step Guide to Organizing Your Financial Documents

Even though we are in the Digital Age, paper remains a constant in our lives. While junk emails have replaced junk snail mail (trees happy, inboxes…not so much), one of the major paper generators of all is personal finances. Last summer my husband and I sold and then bought a home—the amount of paper those two transactions took was mind-boggling. We all have bank records, loans, credit cards, and utilities…and that is just the beginning. So much of our money-related information enters our homes as paper! Organizing paperwork can definitely be overwhelming. Let these guidelines help you get your financial documents in order.

home organizing, paper clutter, personal information

Get Started On Your Taxes Now

This year the IRS began accepting tax returns on January 24, 2022; this is earlier than the usual February. The deadline to file your 2021 taxes is midnight on Monday, April 18, 2022. That date will be here faster than you think. Don’t hold off any longer—the time to file is now. According to the IRS, 20-25% of Americans wait until the final two weeks before the deadline to prepare their documents and file. The sooner you file, the less likely you will need to file an extension or pay a fine.

Here are seven reasons to get started on your taxes today:

income taxes, paperwork

What to Save and What to Shred: Paper Retention Guidelines

Even with many day-to-day tasks moving online, there will still–and always be–paper. The average American receives almost 50,000 pieces of mail in their lifetime, and 30% of it is junk. No wonder so many of us have piles of paper items that can quickly accumulate if not taken care of. You want to tackle the stacks of paper on your desk, but you’re not quite sure how to start? Our guidelines will help you know what to save, what to recycle, and what to shred.

home office, paperwork

Get Control of Your Personal Information – Know What to Shred

Personal information security is a hot topic these days. Between news of identity theft, mass data breaches and social media personal data security, the subject is front and center in our minds. We all want out personal information to be safe, whether it is our financial information, medical records, or social media data. Each year, we handle hundreds of documents that entail sensitive information, physical paper, our personal and financial paperwork.

It can be confusing to figure out what documents we need to keep, how long, and what documents we can dispose of, and how. Some individuals are so anxious about identity theft that they do not dispose of any paperwork at all! That results in massive paper piles, making it nearly impossible to find important documents when you need them. These piles can become an overwhelming burden. Paperwork clutter is a common problem, and very tedious and time consuming to tackle.

paperwork, personal information, shredding

Organize to Protect Your Identity

Data breach. Customer information stolen. Identity theft. Those words regularly appear in the news, making you, the consumer, angry. You wonder why companies can’t seem to figure it out–either stop collecting personal information or protect it!

Despite companies’ security efforts, the risk of identity theft isn’t going away. Criminals world-wide seem to be one step ahead. In 2016, over $16 billion was stolen from consumers, around $1,300 per victim.

finances, identity theft

7 Things You Need to Know to Freeze Your Credit Today

A while back, my friend refinanced her house and then she froze her credit. We had been discussing identity theft when she told me about this. I’d never heard of this concept before. Times have changed I guess, because now phrases like “data breach” and “identity theft” seem to be a part of daily vernacular. Recently, one of the top three credit bureaus, Equifax, was hacked and now we are left to wonder whether our personal data is out there being sold on the “dark web.” (That’s another fun new term – look it up!)

credit report, finances