Important Paperwork Organization and Storage

Even though we live in a digital world, I like keeping paper copies of things. Unfortunately, paperwork can get unruly and often gets neglected. I've set up a filing system for our most used paperwork to help control the situation before it gets out of control.

First, I bought these from Staples. They can withstand a lot more than a regular hanging file, and some components of my system contain some thicker documents.

Photo from Staples.com

My main categories right now are pay stubs, car information, Crosby and Keisel (our dogs), benefits, owner manuals, bills, taxes and Riley. I have this in an easily accessible area so I don't have to go too far out of my way to file something as soon as it's received.

I've had the crate for a long time and can't recall where I purchased it. I see them in Wal Mart, Target and Staples though.

Behind my heavy duty files I have regular hanging files, which are where I store my coupons. I was previously using the binder and baseball card system to organize my coupons, but I found myself getting discouraged from coupons because I was spending so much time clipping, filing and purging on many coupons that were never used. Since I most frequently find my deals by using blogs such as Sisters Shopping on a Shoestring and The Krazy Coupon Lady who tell you which insert you can find the coupon in I decided to change my organization. I now put a small post it with the date of the inserts on the folder and put the entire insert in the file. When it comes time to make my list I pull out my bin and grab the inserts the bloggers tell me to use. It is so much easier, and I find myself being more motivated to coupon again. If I'm making a big trip to Target I'll quickly browse through my inserts and see if I have any coupons for any of the items on my list. Even though this takes some time, it's a lot quicker and more efficient than the time I was wasting on coupons I never used.

Organization for me is very much a personal preference. What works well for others may not fit with my needs. Through trial and error I've killed two birds with one stone (paperwork and coupons). This system has been working for me for a little over a month now so I decided to share it. Hopefully it helps someone else out there. Let me know your preferred method to filing important paperwork and managing coupons, I love organization ideas!