Are You Keeping All The Records You Should?

Some documents are obviously important and don’t require a lot of thought on whether to keep them. Completed tax forms, birth certificates and passports should all be safely and securely stored so that when you need them you can quickly locate them. But there are other less well-known records that you may not be aware of, and these may be just as important. Have you thought about some of the records you might be forgetting?

• Receipts or contracts related to your home – Not only can a home improvement project impact the value of your home, but it can also have tax implications. Saving a document related to a renovation or a home repair is also the best way to validate those expenditures when it comes to selling your home.
• Donation to a nonprofit – If you make a charitable donation to a qualified nonprofit organization you can deduct the fair market value of the donated item, provided you have a receipt to prove the donation. It also should be noted that raffle tickets are not a deductible donation.
• Receipts to validate a warranty claim – Common household appliances or electronics purchases often require a proof of purchase date to take advantage of a warranty. Keeping a file of your large purchases containing the purchase receipt, along with the owner’s manual is a good habit to get into and can make a warranty claim much easier to prove.

When it comes to record-keeping, if you have a legitimate expectation that you might need a record in the future, then keep it. When you’ve made the right decision to organize your record-keeping, you’ll also have a much better chance of finding the records that you decide to keep.