5 Tips to Organize Your Bills
5 Tips to Organize Your Bills
Don’t you hate it when you know a bill is due and you can’t find it anywhere? Keeping your bills organized will help you keep better track of what’s due and when, and you will be able to keep a closer eye on your budget. Check out these tips to help you get your bills organized and in order.
Set Up a Place for Incoming Bills
You know how it goes: You pick up your mail from the mailbox and somehow, when you get inside, you just stick it somewhere. Later, you can’t find those bills when you need them. Set up a specific place for incoming bills so that they go from the mailbox right to that special spot before they get paid or filed away. Some possibilities would be a hanging file or stacking files right inside your back door. Another option would be a magnetic file on the side of your fridge in your kitchen if this is in your normal path as you come inside from the mailbox. Find a spot and stick with it.
Use a Monthly Planner
Purchase an inexpensive monthly planner to keep in your purse or with your bills. The ideal calendar will feature each month spread across two pages. Mark each day of the month with the name and amount of the bill that is due that day. Also mark pay dates. Use red ink for bills and black or blue ink for income. This can help you see at a glance what bills are due during the coming month. Use a butterfly clip to clip the actual bills to the back cover of the planner so the budget and the bills are together.
Set Up Text or Email Reminders
You can set up text or email reminders for bills with many creditors. Most credit card companies offer text and email alerts and even some utility companies will offer that service. Take advantage of the reminders to help you stay on track.
Go Paperless
One of the biggest frustrations with receiving bills in the mail is the amount of papers you end up with. Check with each creditor to see if they offer a paperless option. This will allow you to receive your bill via email instead of a hard copy in the mail.
Use Colored Paper Clips
Buy colored paper clips in four or five different colors — one color for each week of the month. Put a clip on each bill according to the week it is due then keep the bills in a folder with the paper clip easily visible. Once you familiarize yourself with the colors, you will be able to easily grab the stack of bills that are due for the week.
Keeping your bills in order helps you pay them on time and know where they are when you need them. That’s an important step to sticking to a budget and getting your finances organized.
If you are in need of better organization skills in general, then we have some things here that will be sure yo help you out! Check out our guide to Getting Organized! If you find that you are still having organization problems, then you might want to try this book on organizing inside and out!
