One of the best ways to know your financial status is to maintain good records. In order to keep good records need has to organize his or her documents in proper order.
The first step you should take to embark upon this endeavour is to maintain your statements in a proper order. Although, it might be difficult for those who have neglected to keep an eye on their records regularly but the work is worth the effort.
A list of some of the important documents you need to have in your filing system is as follows:
§ Information of your checking and saving account.
§ All important information on your retirement accounts, which includes your IRA’S, Roth IRA’S and 401(k) statements.
§ Information on your non-retirement accounts.
§ Credit card accounts including all expenses you have incurred.
§ Loan papers which include you home mortgages, car loan or student loan.
§ Insurance statements like life, disability, home, car etc.
§ All tax returns for state, federal or any other important documents you need to kept with you at the time of audit. Keep these for at least seven years
§ Your current will, or any paper dealing with current trusts. If you have Living will, it should be also included.
Now, arrange the all the collected documents in a proper way so that it works best for you and help you to meet your needs effectively. It’s a good idea to arrange your documents in separate files so that your credit history can be easily accessed.
The following time table is also suggested for keeping various records:
Monthly account statements, one year. Most institutes issue annual statements which summarizes your account activity.
Tax return, seven years. After a return is filed the IRS can audit your account for up to seven years. At a minimum, you should keep your state and federal tax return and other documents for that period of time.
Loan papers should be kept till the repayment period of the loan plus one additional year. Home loan papers are suggested to keep it longer.
The safety of all documents is very essential, and one should have to be very careful keeping it at the right place. The best and most appropriate option is to deposit it in the safe locker of bank. A good or organized record of these papers will only help you to know your financial status.