Professional Organizer Cyndi Seidler Gives 10 Essential Tips to Organize Your Financial Papers for Tax
Los Angeles, CA - (PRWEB) February 2, 2005 -- This is often the time of year that individuals go on a scavenger hunt for all those financial documents they need to file their taxes.
These "everywhere papers" are the leading cause of stress and the main reason people file their taxes late or file for extensions.
According to a national study survey, executives waste six weeks per year searching for lost documents. And Americans waste 9,000,000 hours per year searching for misplaced items.
Organizer to the Stars Cyndi Seidler suggests that getting an early start on organizing your papers will save you time, anxiety, and money when you file your return. She also advises, "Its a good investment of time to get your financial paperwork organized so tax time doesnt have to be so taxing when the next year comes around."
"Tax time doesnt have to be an ordeal," says Seidler. "It can be less frustrating and less time-consuming if you have all the material at hand without having to sort through stacks of mail, receipts, or various places around the house or office."
Seidler, who owns HandyGirl Organizers, a professional organizing business in the Los Angeles area, offers these essential tips in organizing financial papers:
1) Set up a drop off” place for receipts. Each day, empty receipts from pockets, wallets, purses, or shopping bags into this receipt receptacle.
2) Establish a method to process receipts. On a weekly or monthly basis, perform regular maintenance and file the receipts from the receptacle.
3) Keep bookkeeping activities up-to-date. For manual record-keeping, put receipts into a categorized accordion file. If computerized, enter the expense receipts into your money management software, and then file the receipts away in an Expense Receipts file.
4) Always reconcile your records with bank records when you receive your bank statements.
5) Set up a filing system with accounting files together in one category. Keep expense receipts, paid bills, credit card expenses, banking statements, invoices, income records, income tax returns, and any other accounting documents in clearly labeled files in this category. This makes pulling financial records and archiving end of year finances an easy task.
6) Dont keep receipts that you dont need. Discard receipts that are not related to taxes (unless it is needed for item return or exchange), and toss ATM receipts after your bank statement balances.
7) Implement a paper flow system to manage your flow of mail and financial papers. Set up stacking tray baskets to receive mail, hold pending papers, and to put papers in for filing.
8) Use a vertical file holder for active files, like a Bills to pay” file.
9) Create a categorized finance report of the year's itemized expenses for accountant. This saves accounting costs and is easily carried out with computer money management software.
10) House your important, valuable documents safely. Store such documents as deeds and mortgage papers, birth and marriage certificates, insurance policies, legal agreements, essential investment records, tax returns, and property inventory in a fireproof box or safe deposit box.
Seidler also advises to consider free tax assistance. IRS offers a tax help line at 800-829-1040. Many post offices and libraries carry the most widely requested forms and instructions. Libraries may also have reference sets of IRS publications.
About Cyndi Seidler
"Organizer to the Stars" Cyndi Seidler is an author, syndicated columnist and professional organizer. She's a frequent media guest, and has been helping individuals create organized lifestyles since 1994. Her methods have been featured on TV and in numerous newspapers and magazines, and she has helped prominent celebrities such as Sinbad, Eric Roberts, Karen Black, Tisha Campbell, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Larina Adamson, Bobbi Billard, Billy Sheehan, and Spencer Davis get a grip on their hectic lifestyles.
For more information, visit her web sites: www.organized-living.com; www.handygirl.com; www.cyndiseidler.com. More organization tips are available at www.organized-living.com for articles available to reporters for reprinting with appropriate credit.
Book Title: "A Manual For Professional Organizers" publisher, Banter Books, Quality Trade Paperback, 148 pages, ISBN 0-9705125-0-3. Available from publisher and bookstores nationwide. Price $32.00.
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Contact: Amanda St. John, VP Public Relations (818) 686-8888, pr@snjhn.com.
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