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Set Your Records Straight!

Get Started on Good Financial Record Keeping

By Teri Brown

Paper comes in and paper goes out. The paper chase for families is a daunting, never-ending process. You have school records, medical records, vet records, maintenance records and to do lists. But perhaps no records are as important for your family to maintain as those for your finances. A bill of sale can help in a dispute, bank records can fix a financial error and good record keeping can make an audit less stressful.

Crysty Riggs, of Clemson, S.C., wouldn't consider herself the most organized person in the world, but she tries. With three children, a number of pets and a business, she has her hands full and feels lucky that she finds time to balance the books on the restaurant she owns with her husband. That leaves her home records lacking a bit. "I'm sure I could do a much better job at record keeping if it was the only job I was responsible for," says Riggs. "I can find things I am looking for, but not without considerable effort."

Storage space and time are Riggs' greatest problems. She says having to track things down over a large area is time consuming. "It is very frustrating, because it can be a highly detailed job if done properly," says Riggs. "I don't have time to do it, and that leads to a poor job of record keeping."

According to Sheila Bartlett, tax research analyst for H&R Block, frustration is the No. 1 reason people should be keeping good records. "Accurate record keeping can seem like a cumbersome task, but it is very important for a variety of reasons," says Bartlett. "Can you remember a time when you needed a receipt or a document and found yourself frantically searching through piles of paperwork to find it? If so, you can probably remember the frustration you felt with not being able to find it immediately."

Want to see more?

• Money Sense for New Families: 5 Tips from Financial Planners
• Airing out Your Wallet: Financial Spring Cleaning
• Get Organized! Keeping Baby's Health Records in Check
• Talk about it!