For someone who always considered herself very organized, I really have no excuse for the fact that my most important family and financial documents were scattered all over the house. I kept filed taxes from past years in a cabinet, insurance documents in a drawer, bills, car and home paperwork on random shelves and in various folders.
It was a bit of a disaster. And hard to find when I needed something. And embarrassing. And a time waster. So I knew I had to do something about it. I decided to create a Home Management binder, to put all my family’s most important financial documents in one place, neatly organized and accessible when needed. Now, when I need to create a monthly budget template, review expenditures, find my son’s birth certificate, my passport, the title to the car, or an old tax return, I just open up my Home Management Binder and voilà, it’s all there.
How to create your Home Management Binder
Creating your own Home Management Binder is a great idea for all the reasons mentioned above, as well as the fact that buying one ready-made can cost hundreds of dollars and still not suit your particular needs, so I recommend making your own.
What you need to make your DIY Home Management Binder:
A 2″ or larger binder (you’ll be surprised how fast it fills up; mine is 3″)
Dividers with tabs (and pockets are a plus)
Several dozen clear plastic page protectors with binder holes
Zippered binder pockets
Business card holder
Pen and marker
Organize the sections of your binder with the pocket dividers and label each section. Find your important documents and insert them into the page protectors, then file them into the appropriate section. In the back, add a pocket for our passports and immunization records.
Suggested categories for your Home Management Binder
Free Printables For Your Home Management Binder
Lost Wallet Helper
Basic Medical Information
Warranty Tracker
Car Maintenance Tracker
Birthday Organizer
Store your home management binder in a tote with handles to make it easy to grab and go in an emergency, and keep it safely out of sight.
The end result? We are organized, and every important document is in one easy to find place, saving space and time. It’s fabulous! Every family should have a family and home management binder.
What a great idea. I never thought about creating a home management binder but it makes sense.
What a perfect idea to keep everything in one place!
Ugh. I really need to do this. Maybe I’ll carve out some time next weekend.
Thank you for the organizational inspiration!
I basically do the same thing, but I just have it in my file cabinet. However, it severely needs some updating and shredding of old docs, so you reminded me.
Great tips, I definitely need something like this.
Looks like something I could do, and would actually use.
Wow. Look at you go! It seems like home management for me these days peaks at making sure everyone has eaten that day. 🙂
I just bookmarked this post so I can go back and do thi slater. I also need one for like menus and everyday stuff.
this is such a great idea! thanks for the tutorial
Great idea. It is so easy to make and most of the items are probably around the house anyway. Guess I’ll get to making mine since I already have the supplies handy.
We are so slacking on being organized like this. Once the baby is here it’s even more important. Thanks for the tips!
I so need to do something like this to help myself get organized.
I so need to do this. Thank you for sharing it!
Very neat idea. I just have everything filed away neatly in our file cabinet.
I have my binder started but really need to add the tabs so it’s easier to find. My husband would have to thumb through all the pages to find something.
I so need to do this. I really want to start the year much more organized!
so need to do this
That is very useful!
What a great way to keep important things organized.