social

Organizing Retirement Paperwork

As we get ever closer to retirement, I have found it very helpful to create a 3-ring notebook with dividers (home made out of old discarded file folders) for all the retirement accounts, Social Security info sheets, 401K investment reports, etc., for both my husband and myself.

Advertisement

Each divider is carefully labeled and the reports we receive are filed with the most recent one on the top of the appropriate section. Also in this notebook (by section) are all the insurance papers and policies along with contact info for each company, a copy of our living wills, a copy of our personal will, funeral and burial instructions, our lawyer's name, address, telephone number, as well as a section with pertinent bank account numbers, safety deposit box numbers and bank name, etc.

This allows me to track where these important papers are, but even more so, every one of our grown children know that the red notebook on the bottom shelf of the library in my office is the place where they will find every scrap of information they need should they be put into a position to have to handle this information on our behalf. This notebook, in existence for five years now, gives me incredible peace of mind.

Advertisement

By Ronsan from Southwest Missouri

Add your voice! Click below to comment. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!

 
By Lynda (Guest Post)
August 28, 20060 found this helpful
Top Comment

Wonderful idea!! Since we are not leaving this Earth
a minute before it's time or before He says, unless we are foolish and bring about an early death, and because we cannot add one minute to our life, may the Prince of Peace be your HOPE and in your heart at all times. God bless you.

 
By Claudia- MD (Guest Post)
August 30, 20060 found this helpful
Top Comment

This is a great idea and everyone approaching retirement age should organize their paperwork like this. My father just passed away at the end of July and we have had quite a time sorting through all of his paperwork trying to find the necessary stuff among all of the meaningless junk (example- check registers, credit card statements from the '70s).

Advertisement

Creating a well-organized notebook or file is a gift to yourself and helps you understand your financial status. But it's also a gift that continues to give after you are gone. Do your family this favor and they will be very grateful!

 
March 21, 20120 found this helpful
Top Comment

I have done basically the same thing and my daughter has a copy of it all, and she and my husband know the color of the folder in my desk, as I do not keep it out in the open. I also included internet passwords to important sites, a list of programs, subscriptions, social security, medicare, etc to notify/cancel.

She is on our bank accounts, and has the logins so she can transfer any money if something happens as she lives in another state.

I tried to think of everything I could so I would not leave anything to chance. I wanted my daughter and/or my husband to be able to immediately take over things without any difficulty. I go through it every so often and make sure it is all up to date. It does offer peace of mind knowing that when my time comes, all is ready to be taken over.

 

Silver Post Medal for All Time! 263 Posts
August 31, 20060 found this helpful

This is all well and good to know. But in case of a break-in, your identity could be taken with all this info. I feel that this information should have been kept between you and your immediate family, for security reasons.

 
April 9, 20180 found this helpful

Do you have a sample?

 
April 26, 20180 found this helpful

Keeping your records in order is indeed a great idea and a necessity!
I bit the bullet several years ago and went paperless. It has seriously changed my life.

Advertisement


Buy yourself a good quality scanner. You don't have to spend a fortune on one. I use a basic little Doxie single sheet scanner. The software is great and makes it so easy!
You scan all of your records and organize them on your PC or Mac into logical folders. (Taxes, IRA's, Medical, HRA's, etc).
When you scan and name your records, Doxie allows you to save them as a OCR PDF file. That stands for Optical Character Recognition PDF files. This means that once saved, the search function on your computer can find your files in an instant. No more digging through files and folders in a file drawer or cabinet.
This book is my "bible" and is a gold mine of great info to go paperless: "Paperless": A MacSparky Field Guide" by David Sparks

 

Add your voice! Click below to comment. ThriftyFun is powered by your wisdom!

 
In This Page
Categories
Budget & Finance RetirementAugust 28, 2006
Pages
More
💘
Valentine's Ideas!
🎂
Birthday Ideas!
🍀
St. Patrick's Ideas!
Facebook
Pinterest
YouTube
Instagram
Categories
Better LivingBudget & FinanceBusiness and LegalComputersConsumer AdviceCoronavirusCraftsEducationEntertainmentFood and RecipesHealth & BeautyHolidays and PartiesHome and GardenMake Your OwnOrganizingParentingPetsPhotosTravel and RecreationWeddings
Published by ThriftyFun.
Desktop Page | View Mobile
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Contact Us
Generated 2024-01-29 12:34:53 in 3 secs. ⛅️️
© 1997-2024 by Cumuli, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
https://www.thriftyfun.com/Organizing-Retirement-Paperwork.html