The Big Book of Everything: A Free Life-Affairs Organizer

Such a comprehensive “reference manual” should be stored in a safe place (you don’t want burglars to steal it) – in a secure safe or safe-deposit box. Is it realistic to expect up-to-date information in such conditions?

This kind of document would be great to grab if you have to evacuate due to hurricane, tornado, fire, etc. As Kristen said, it’s a wonderful referral for the non-administrative spouse in a couple. It would also be extremely helpful for anyone trying to settle your estate. My mom recently showed me a file she set up with my name on it that has all this kind of information so I have access to my parents’ accounts, passwords, etc. when the need arises.

The scaredy cat side of me also thinks, however, that this is an identity thief’s dream. He breaks into your house and in a few minutes finds this book/file/document and has everything needed to assume your identity and wreck your life. I would want to store it in a safe deposit box, locked safe, or somewhere safe.

Excellent! Thanks for posting this. I keep meaning to put together something like this, along with an emergency kit. Now I have even greater incentive.

As far as those worried about ID theft. I think there’s some legitimate concern, but honestly, how often are homes broken into AND how often will a common thief steal a binder that you’ve HOPEFULLY put in a somewhat hidden place? They’re going to go for jewelry, cash, and anything else they can move quickly. I would think ID theft is more common online or someone going thru garbage, not breaking into your house. Just my opinion.

Again, thanks for sharing, Erik (and JD)!

Big thanks to Erik for putting this together. Currently, I keep most of my info in a clunky excel file that is locked with a password and stored in a hidden folder in an unusual place. I’m downloading this to see if I can better organize my info.

Can you lock a PDF file with a password? Surely it must be possible?

You can lock a PDF with a password but you need the full version of Adobe Acrobat to do it.

Alternately, you can just create a password protected ZIP file on your own if you’re using Windows. Just put the PDF in that archive. Here’s how: http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Password-Protected-File-%28for-Microsoft-Users%29

I’ve been working on a document like this for a while, but it’s quite a bit larger.

This is a wonderful resource. I hope Erik reads the comments to get all the thank-yous.

I recently started working on something like that and will have to take a look to see if maybe it will get me organized. The hard thing about the current one is trying to get all the other papers like insurance documents, bank info, etc since we have gone digital for almost everything.

Thanks Erik for sharing! I’ve been wondering when I should start throwing out the old tax papers and stuff in my organizer. It’s ballooned to where things no longer fit.

Rgds,

RB

Thank you!!! I’ve been wanting to do this!

I suppose you could keep it in a safe-deposit box, and just make a habit of, every quarter, bringing a new version in. I wouldn’t keep such a thing at home, as many have stated, due to identify theives and burglars. Great resource, Erik. Thank you for putting it together.

Thank you so much for sharing your work, Erik!

I would encourage anyone compiling such a document to type it up or compile it on a computer (even if you print it out and don’t save the original file). That way, account numbers are much less likely to be mis-read than if they were handwritten.

I can think of one instance in our business when I gave my DH a copy of one of our FEINs written on a Post-It note, and he interpreted one of my “7″s as a “2″. That took some extra correspondence to sort out with the agency that received the inaccurate info.

I’ve suggested to my siblings that we fill out copies and trade them. I’d be willing to have a digital copy on a laptop/backup drive OR a sealed printed copy, whichever they prefer. We’re all single so it would be nice to know they don’t have to dig through my horrific lack of filing if I get hit by a pickle truck.

Of course I have a very high level of trust with my siblings; if I had concerns, I’d give a copy to my best friend and just tell them to contact her in case of pickle truck.

Thanks Erik (and J.D.) for sharing this resource!

We’ve just begun organizing our “life book” so this will be incredibly handy to us. I’ll definitely be downloading it soon.

Don’t do it! Don’t save your passwords in a PDF, Excel file, Word document, ZIP file, or any thing like this EVEN if it’s password protected. I work in information technology and can assure you that this is very dangerous.

Password protection on these types of files is a nearly worthless false sense of security that can be bypassed in seconds, and your passwords aren’t encrypted. Instead use one of the many free password keeper software packages, like KeyPass (http://keepass.info/) which works on Windows, MAC, even your blackberry.

Interesting info about the emergency gas shut-off valve and so forth. I just bought a house and remember the inspector showed me where stuff like that was. But I don’t remember now! What to do??

In case Erik has trouble making it editable, it is possible to type directly on non-formed PDFs using freeware.

I use PDF-XChange Viewer. No affiliation.

http://www.docu-track.com/home/prod_user/PDF-XChange_Tools/pdfx_viewer/?act69=download

Thanks, this is great, and timely. But, I can’t seem to find it in the Excel format, am I missing something? This is great information, and has been on our “need to do” list for far to long.
J

This is the most awesomest thing EVAR!

Did you all know Quicken software has “Home Inventory Manager” and “Emergency Records Organizer” for this kind of information???

If there is a place to donate or a cause you’d like donated to for taking the time to put this together, please let me know!

I think that assembling most of this information is a good to do, but I would draw the line at passwords and ATM PIN numbers. Even an executor can get by without accessing these.

As for location, I would suggest that it be placed in a zip-lock bag and placed into a chest freezer in the basement. In case of fire, the document would be protected. Also, few thieves would consider ransacking a chest freezer. Also, if you let your executor know that your will is in the freezer, it is a location that will not easily be forgotten.

Thank you both!

@ Jessica,
Darn. I’ve been using a chest freezer for important documents because I’m too cheap (er, frugal) to buy a decent-sized firesafe or get a safe deposit box. Guess I’ll have to cave and invest in the safe.