Organizing Files with the Freedom Filer

Happy Tax Day, people! Since April is Tax Month I figured I might share some things that have made this tax season a little easier for Andy and me.

Since the beginning of time, I've wanted an appropriate filing system. I'm gonna be honest with you, until recently I knew nothing about taxes or what documents to keep/throw away (and I still really only know the basics). Andy files all of our receipts/bills into the computer because of the farm business so I don't have much of a hand in it. But there are bunch of other items besides bills we needed to start filing, so I did some research..

I don't have any affiliation with Freedom Filer but I've had my eye on one since watching this video posted on Alejandra.tv a long time ago (probably a year and a half ago to be honest). It was one of the satisfied gifts on my Christmas list this year because it's not something I would likely buy for myself. We got a filing cabinet and folders shortly after Christmas, and right away I got to putting it all together.

I mostly got the system because as I said, I had no idea where to start. The system comes with pages and pages of color coated sticky labels that are already printed. Could you do this on your own? Sure. But printing labels is a pain in the rear and takes forever (at least for me) - so that part is a win for me.

The system is broken down into color-coded categories, which makes finding certain files very easy: 

-Permanent items (red), such as birth certificates, education certificates, family history, etc. These are items that never have to be rearranged or taken out.

-Temporary items (orange) are things that have an end, such as leases and insurance policies. These folders will likely always be filled but need to be replaced with updated documents (ie. each year put in your new lease agreement or policy).

-Monthly items (green) are mostly financial related, like bills, receipts, and bank statements which you are constantly accumulating. 

-Tax items/Archives (blue) would be any tax forms (1099, W2, or returns) or things that need to be written off as a work expense.

-Resource (purple) and Active (gray) folders are sort of miscellaneous. Things like coupons, to-do lists, and any other ongoing items belong here.

It also comes with a guide that gives a lot of helpful hints on how to set up and organize the system - SUPER SUPER HELPFUL. It sounds straight forward but it's definitely important to read before you do anything. Then you can figure out which of the labels you'll need and buy appropriate folders from there (I definitely got more than I needed because I skipped this step). Most importantly the guide breaks down each category and each of the labels provided within. So it gives you examples of items to be filed within every single label provided. I chose to get colored folders for each of the colored labels, but if I were to do it again I would use all one color and let the colored tabs speak for themselves. Then I wouldn't have to worry about having the right of number of folders for every color - I have a lot of extras. 

I should note that I only used about 1/3 of the labels they give you. There are a lot of repeats that I didn't need. And as I said, Andy already had a system for receipts so I basically didn't need that whole section (perhaps I can someday get him to convert to this way, but I doubt it). There is a label for literally everything you could possibly think of - every type of account or purchase or form out there. You're destined to not use them all. The labels are general though. For instance they say 'vehicle' instead of 'Ford Fusion' or whatever, so as your life evolves you can still keep the same file without needing to change it. You can add the letter or number stickers to personalize them if needed. It's sort of hard to explain, but it all works. 

Overall it cuts down the labor of creating your own file system if you need to have everything printed and matching like I do and don't know where the heck to start. I honestly think the guide is the most helpful part, as I could've just used that to form a list of labels to make. I saved all the labels I didn't use because I feel like our needs will change as the years go on (meaning more files). I've added new files a few times since I set the system up. It has reeeaallllyy cut down on the paper clutter in our office (which is still a work in progress).