Bill Pay Organization

Paying bills can be a thorn in your backside if you let it. However, it can be easy as pie if you allow it to be. My bill-pay system is SO easy and impossible to screw up. Here's what I do: I use a little Post-It note tab and write the name of each bill I have, then place it on my calendar on the date it is due. The bright color stands out against my white calendar so I notice it and remember to pay the bill. After I pay the bill I make sure to move the reminder to the next month so I know that the bill has been paid. I also have a mini dry-erase board next to my calendar with the names and due dates of my bills for the upcoming/current month, then make a note when I pay the bill. I also have a handy little bill organizer in my den that helps me to keep my invoices more orderly and not get lost, also it eliminates the piles that bills would make otherwise.

Organizing your bills and expenses is very easy. If you have a lot of documents to keep track of or to organize, my suggestion would be to purchase a file cabinet, otherwise it is just as effective to use a household file folder. Both methods allow you to use a file folder to organize specific bills, documents or expenses. After I pay my bills I put the statement or invoice in its respective folder and move on. I can always come back to it in case there is a discrepancy.

I do all of my banking online so I have very quick and easy access to my bills and my bank statements, but I have seen people develop very crafty techniques for organizing and monitoring their bills. This also eliminates the need for writing checks, which enables me to keep track of my spending online instead of having to constantly balance my checkbook.

My mom uses a bill book where she reserves one page for each month, writes the name of her bills in one column, the amount due, the due date, the date she paid the bill, and the amount she paid. Pretty simple, huh? Microsoft Excel has templates available for creating a budget or tracking expenses and bills. One new tool that we have been using is www.mint.com, which was designed to track your spending and help you stay on budget. It's a great website to use to help you get financially organized. It even sends you reminders about when your bills are due! There are so many easy and free ways to organize your bills.

Need I say this, but creating a budget is really a key part of organizing your finances. With the economy in its current state I think it wouldn't hurt any of us to re-evaluate where our money is coming from and going to. Then you can determine where you are able to cut costs and save more.