My Organized Files

Ever since I posted a picture of my organized files, I’ve been bombarded with questions asking for more information about the specific categories and sub-categories I use {yes, I have sub-categories!}.

I figured I would get this questions, and I’ll be honest, the main reason I hesitate to show you OUR categories is because they are OUR categories. They work for me, for Dave, and for our needs…but they might not work for you.

For example; we file our home insurance under “home”, our vehicle insurance under “vehicles”, and our medical insurance under “medical. But you might simply have one folder labeled “Insurance” and file all your insurance information in that folder.

So before I show you OUR files…consider a few things:

1. What name will you think to look for?

Will you look for “car” or “vehicle”? Will you look for “home” or “mortgage” or “house” or “1234 Street Name”? Will you look for “medical” or “health” or “doctors”?

As you set out to create categories {and sub-categories} stop and think about what words will trigger your memory and then use those words as your main categories.

2. Get the proper tools.

Don’t worry, this is the easy part! My advice is to get a box of hanging files, a box of manila file {with the tabs all in one direction}, and a bold marker. You might also want a large recycle bin and a shredder!

3. There is MORE than one right way to do this.

There are many ways to organize a filing cabinet so you might have to play around a bit until you find the one that works best for you and your needs.

For example: I file our personal files in alphabetical order — starting with the beginning of the alphabet; but I file my business files in the order I use them — with the most frequently used files up front.

A peak into MY filing cabinet!

Be forewarned — you are about to embark on a very LONG list…but I’ve been using these categories for several years now and they really do work for us!

NOTE: {the words in caps are the main categories, the bullet points are sub-categories}

DIRECTORIES:

We have loads of directories for school, church, etc. so we keep them all in this file

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ELECTRONICS:

We keep receipts, manuals, warranties, and any other information for our electronics in the sub-folders

• Cameras
• Computer Programs
• Laptops
• Printer
• Other Electronics

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FINANCES:

We get all paperless statements so this is just basic information for these accounts

• CD’s
• Checking & Savings Account
• Credit Card Info
• Income — Dave’s income info. is filed here; mine is all in the next drawer down {my business drawer}
• Investments
• Savings Bonds

{we keep our retirement info separately – see “Retirement” below}

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HOME:

• General — lots of info from buying our new home
• Insurance
• Improvements — this file is pretty full right now!
• Mortgage

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LANDSCAPE:

• Equipment — manuals and warranties for our many yard tools and equipment
• Sprinkler System — we have underground sprinkling
• Plants — I like to keep record of things I’ve planted in the past

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MANUALS:

We keep nearly all our manuals in these folders {besides electronics and some yard equipment}

• Kitchen — all small and large kitchen appliances and tools
• Other — anything besides, kitchen, tools, and electronics
• Tools — any other tools or equipment

.

MEDICAL:

• Andrea — my records
• Dave — Dave’s records
• Dental Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Life Insurance

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MISCELLANEOUS:

I have so much information that I like to keep handy — so this is where most of it ends up!

• Canning
• Gift Ideas
• Holiday Info
• Travel Plans

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PERSONAL:

We keep most of our REALLY important documents in a fire-proof save, but anything else that we just want to hang onto goes into these files {like certificates, diplomas, newspaper write-ups, etc.}

• Andrea
• Dave
• Dave & Andrea
• Family — we have copies of both our parents’ Wills

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RECEIPTS:

• Store Receipts — if I think I’ll need to return something. Find more tips to manage your receipts here
• Rebates Sent — I keep photo copies of all the rebates I send until I get the rebate back.
• Rebates Received — you can also use this handy form to track your rebates

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RETIREMENT:

Even though we try to go as “paperless” as possible, there is still a lot of information we need to keep for our retirement accounts

• 403b
• Pension Plan
• Roth IRA #1
• Roth IRA #2
• Other

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TAXES:

We keep the last 7 tax refunds in our fire-proof safe, and once our 2010 taxes are done, I’ll move that file to the safe as well.

• 2010
• 2011

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UTILITIES:

We get ALL paperless statements for these accounts, but we still need a place to keep our contracts, online account information, and contact information.

• Cable/Internet
• Garbage
• Gas/Electric
• Newspaper
• Phones
• Water/Sewer

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VALUABLES:

I’ll admit, we don’t have many valuables — but I thought this might be useful for many of you!

• Dishes/China
• Furniture
• Jewelry

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VEHICLES:

We keep the records of any maintenance and/or repairs here

• Vehicle #1
• Vehicle #1
• Insurance

That’s it — ALL our categories and sub-categories.

In case you can’t tell, I absolutely LOVE organizing and filing papers!

I know it’s a long list, but honestly, every piece of paper in our entire house is in that cabinet. We don’t have paper anywhere else — I can guarantee it {well, besides the newspaper}!

Even though I know some of you will be overwhelmed by the thought of organizing all your paperwork, my hope is that seeing exactly how I organize our files will motivate you to get started on your own.

And once you start, you will be amazed at how quickly you can find and access every piece of paper in your house. No more wasting time or energy searching for your lost paperwork…it will all be right there in your organized files!

Where to Start?

Find appropriate storage containers {filing cabinet, paper box, storage tub, etc}.

Toss or shred anything you don’t absolutely need {guidelines here}.

Start small — 15 or 20 minutes at a time.

How do you file YOUR papers? Do you have any secrets?

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Linked to Thrifty Decor Chick’s Organize It Party