Tis the season to assess what went well in our world, determine what didn\u2019t, and find ways to make the New Year better. To make life easier in the New Year, use the following tips to get and stay organized throughout the year. There\u2019s an added bonus to doing so \u2013\u2013\u00a0implement these tips, and you\u2019ll keep reaping the benefits long after the New Year has come and gone!<\/p>\n
Make sure your family enjoys their current lifestyle, no matter what happens, by reviewing your estate plan and getting your important documents in order.<\/p>\n
1. Update your will. 2. Choose an Executor to handle your estate. 3. Designate a durable power of attorney.<\/strong> 4. Prepare a living will and health care proxy. 5. Appoint a guardian. 6. Help aging parents get organized. 7. Review insurance policies. 8. List your digital assets. 9. Make final arrangements. Finding ways to prep year-round makes life so much easier when tax season arrives!<\/p>\n 10. Gather receipts and important documents. 11. Keep a file for tax-deductible charity donations. 12. Organize your digital filing cabinet. 13. Stay on top of digital filing. 14. Shred documents.<\/strong> Identity theft is prevalent nowadays, so keeping an eye on your credit is an important task to handle annually.<\/p>\n 15. Request free credit reports. 16. Sign up for a credit freeze. Keeping your personal online data private is key to safely using the Internet.<\/p>\n 17. Opt out of data collection. 18. Turn off Internet browser cookies. 19. Stop interest-based ads. 20. Create unique passwords to keep data safe. 21. Create fictitious accounts. Give yourself some breathing room by tackling those piles of documents and belongings.<\/p>\n 22. Remove stuff.<\/strong> 23. Organize paperwork. 24. Use mobile apps to stay organized. Should your new year include travel, use these tips to start prepping now to avoid last minute delays.<\/p>\n 25. Join loyalty programs.<\/strong> 26. Check on travel insurance.<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>Review your will, and update it to meet your current wishes. Consider changing it if you got married, divorced, had a child or adopted one.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>An executor is responsible for making sure your final wishes are fulfilled. Download our Estate Planning Checklist<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n
\nDesignate a power of attorney to handle your financial and legal matters if you become temporarily or permanently disabled.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>A living will explains your wishes for artificially sustaining your life. Talk to your family and doctor about your wishes. If you do not have an estate plan in place, or if it\u2019s outdated, make an appointment to see an estate attorney.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Choose a guardian for minor children, and then make proper financial provisions for them.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Download our Important Documents Checklist<\/a>, then gather, organize and store documents you or your aging parents need to handle their affairs. Get more ideas with our article, The Necessity of Managing Personal Financial Documents for Aging Parents<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Update beneficiary designations on your insurance policies, especially after a marriage, divorce, adoption or death. Don\u2019t forget policies your parents bought on your behalf or policies from your first job. There is over $1 billion in unclaimed life insurance funds due to forgotten or misplaced insurance policies.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Include usernames, passwords, security questions\/answers and locations for all online and social media accounts. Include details about accessing your computer, laptop, external hard drives, mobile phone and cloud information. Download a free copy of our Fillable Desktop Password Manager<\/a> to help keep track of this information. Give a copy to your executor and store a copy in a fireproof safe<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Download our Bereavement Checklist<\/a> to assist you in making final arrangements.<\/p>\nPrep for Taxes<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong>Create files at the beginning of the year so everything is right at your fingertips when you\u2019re ready to file. Include out-of-pocket medical expenses, prescriptions, mortgage interest statements and college education expenses.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>If you give money to a church or a non-profit organization, keep the receipts for calculating itemized deductions. Ask for an acknowledgment letter for donating unwanted items that tally up to more than $250.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Reduce the amount of paper you must organize and store by requesting paperless statements from financial institutions and utility companies. Download the files in PDF format so you can save on your computer or in the cloud.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Going paperless means you must be diligent about taking time each month to download statements and file them in a digital filing system on your computer or the cloud. That way, if you need a statement, you can access a digital copy quickly and easily.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Free up space by shredding outdated financial statements and personal information, including credit card offers. Consider using a mobile shredding company to come to your home or apartment and shred your personal documents onsite. Check with your local municipality to see if they offer free document shredding for residents.<\/p>\nEvaluate Credit Reports<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong>Go to AnnualCreditReport.com<\/a>, the official site authorized by federal law, to download one free credit report every 12 months from Experian<\/a>, TransUnion<\/a>, and Equifax<\/a>. Review the credit report for erroneous information. Contact the credit agency immediately if you see errors. Ideally, order one credit report from each of the three bureaus every four months so you stay on top of changes.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>A credit freeze, also known as a credit lockdown, prevents companies from accessing your credit report without your permission. This includes companies offering credit cards and loans.<\/p>\nProtect Online Data<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/strong>Stop data brokers such as Acxiom<\/a>, Experian<\/a> and Epsilon<\/a> from collecting personal information \u2013\u2013 without your knowledge \u2013\u2013 from the websites you visit. Learn how to opt out in our article, Six Ways to Protect Your Personal Data<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Cookies are small text files used by some websites to monitor your history and online preferences. Follow the directions in our article<\/a> to turn these off in your web browser.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Interest-based ads that pop up on your screen after you shop online come from information gathered by data broker companies. Follow our instructions<\/a> to get rid of these ads.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Whenever you set up a new account, don\u2019t use the same password. Instead, use a password generator<\/a> to create unique multi-character passwords. Keep track of your login information with our free Fillable Desktop Password Manager<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Use fictitious personal information when online shopping to help avoid identity theft. For instance, set up Yahoo or Gmail email addresses for use when shopping online.<\/p>\nOrganize Space and Time<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nClean out your home and office and donate items you no longer need.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Sort, copy and store difficult to replace documents, including mortgage records, contracts and wills, in a fireproof, weatherproof safe<\/a> or filing cabinet. Store the rest, such as tax documents, insurance claims and Explanation of Benefits (EOBs), in a filing system in your home or office.<\/p>\n
\n<\/strong>Stay organized with your cell phone or tablet. Our picks include Intuit Mint<\/a> for ways to save money, budget and keep track of finances in one place. Learn more on how Mint can help organize your life<\/a>. Keep track of your personal health with iBlueButton<\/a> or HealthVault<\/a>.<\/p>\nGet Ready to Travel<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nSign up now for hotel and airline loyalty programs that result in free flights or upgrades, early check-ins and room upgrades. Review existing accounts to make sure no one has siphoned away your points.<\/p>\n
\nFind out if your insurance carrier provides coverage for medical emergencies or evacuations when you\u2019re in a different country. Your credit card may also offer this coverage.<\/p>\n