Clutter Busting: Identifying & Protecting Your Most Important Papers

In Case of EmergencyLast week we worked on the large filling drawer to keep important papers. These papers, although quite important, are not as imperative as the items I am going to ask you to keep in your smaller folio. Once completed this smaller folio will contain everything you need in case of an emergency. In addition, it is extremely important to instruct your family members as to where this folio is in case you are unable to get it.

• Titles of owned property (real estate, cars, recreation vehicles, etc)
• Other property records
• Certificates of Deposits and Stocks that have not been cashed in
• Insurance Policies (auto, home, health, others)
• Open Loan Agreements
• Child Support Orders
• Retirement plan papers
• Birth Certificates for all family members
• Citizenship papers
• Marriage Certificate or domestic partner registration paper
• Divorce paper
• Death Certificate of family member
• Social Security Card
• Records of paid mortgages
• Will and Trust
• Power of Attorney
• Copies of all current credit cards front and back (in case they got lost or stolen)
• Past 3 years taxes

Spend this week working on this folio and completing your drawer files. Don’t forget to shred any papers prior to throwing into the garbage if there is any important information on them.

Next week we are going to work on other paper clutter issues and creating a system that works for your home.

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