Financial Documents And Checklists: A First Step To Financial Clarity
Financial wellness begins with the organization and clarity of your financial status and goals. It is important to understand where you are now and know where you want to be in the future, no matter what your stage of life. There are several questions that can assist in determining your financial well-being, such as:
- Do you have an emergency fund, and if so, how many months of expenses will it cover?
- What is your credit score? Are there things you can do to improve it?
- What are your spending and savings?
- Do you have any debt, and if so, do you have a plan to pay it off?
- Do you know what level of insurance coverage and protection you have, and is it enough?
- Do you know what will happen to your assets when you die?
- If you were to become ill, disabled, or deceased, would your family know what you have?
Several of the questions above can be answered by gathering documentation, and one of the key steps in any financial planning process is data gathering. Many of our clients use our MoneyCenter tool, and specifically its secure vault to upload and store financial, legal, and family documents. Here is a checklist of documents that you might want to add to your vault today.
Legal Documents:
- Wills and codicils
- Deeds
- Trusts
- Powers of attorney
- Living wills and health care proxies
- Pre- and post-nuptial agreements
- Buy/sell agreements
- Contracts
- Pre-paid funeral accounts/cemetery plots and deeds
Benefits:
- Social Security information/award letters
- Veteran’s Administration info
- Employment benefits
Insurance Policies:
- Life
- Disability
- Property and casualty
- Car
- Medical
- Long Term Care
Bank and investment statements:
- Pensions, annuities, IRAs, and other retirement accounts
- Brokerage accounts
- Stock options/certificates
- Bank accounts (savings, checking)
Liabilities:
- List of credit cards
- Mortgages
- Outstanding loans
Taxes:
- Tax returns
- W-2s
Identification and vital documents:
- Birth certificates
- Driver’s licenses
- Passports
- Social Security cards
- Death certificates of family members
- Marriage certificates
- Divorce documentation
- Military records
- Citizenship documents
- Adoption records
Property/other:
- Titles to automobiles, boats, home
- Warranties
- Pictures, videos, audio files
- Family tree
Additional suggested lists:
- Personal property (jewelry, collectibles, artwork, etc.), including value and location
- Real estate (personal, rental and commercial), including title and value
- List of liabilities (creditors and amount owed)
- List of advisors (names and contact information), such as attorney, tax advisor, financial advisor, banker, etc.
- Employment, business, and membership information
- Medical providers (doctors, dentist, pharmacy, etc.)
- List of digital devices and passwords
- List of online accounts (include URLs and passwords)
Would you like to learn more about MoneyCenter and how we can work together to build a plan to help make your financial goals a reality? Just answer a few questions about yourself and your future objectives. Then, request a consultation so we can build a plan to help you get there. Start now.