As you prepare to file your tax return, take time to organize your records regarding medical expenses. Although you must meet a threshold in order to take the deduction, you cannot make that calculation unless you have retained your records and added up your expenses. You may be surprised to learn what you may include such as mileage or travel expenses plus meals and lodging if you go out of town for care.

Even if you do not reach the threshold for the deduction or do not itemize, there’s another use for compiling your medical expenses. Use this data to estimate the set aside amount for a Flexible Spending Account (FSA). Using an FSA allows you to pay qualified medical expenses with pre-tax dollars. However, it’s critical not to overestimate your expenses because you will forfeit any dollars remaining in your account at the end of the plan year.

See IRS Publication 502 for details regarding qualified medical expenses.

   Getting organized is one the top ten most common New Year’s resolutions, second only to losing weight. While less than half of the population makes resolutions, even fewer keep them. Only 71 percent keep a resolution past the first two weeks of the year. Yet, despite the fact people often do not keep their resolutions, research shows that making resolutions is still worthwhile. People who make resolutions or set goals are ten times more likely to attain their goals than those who do not set a conscious goal.

   If you are among those who have already let your resolution slide, give yourself a “do-over.” Start your New Year over with the Chinese New Year and re-affirm your resolution to get organized. It’s the Year of the Dragon, considered the luckiest in the 12-year Chinese Zodiac. Maybe with some extra luck, you’ll keep your resolution this time.

"Eliminate physical clutter. More importantly,
eliminate spiritual clutter."
Terri Guillemets

   Physical clutter and spiritual clutter are not two distinct types of clutter; they are related. If you address one, the other will improve. When you eliminate physical clutter, your mind becomes clearer. When you eliminate distractions, your physical environment becomes less cluttered. Whenever I find myself at a crossroads or unclear about how to tackle a problem, I clean out a drawer or a closet. Throwing something away gets the energy moving again and the way forward soon becomes clear.

Over the holiday weekend I managed to catch a home & garden television show about celebrity Candy Spelling’s 56,500 sq. ft .manor house and her subsequent downsize to a condo the size of her former attic. Candy was married to television producer Aaron Spelling until his death in 2006. Mind you most of us have about 1,800 sq. ft. and downsize to 1,000 sq. ft., but the issues are still the same. I was amazed at how organized Candy is with all her stuff, from doll collections to Christmas decorations. Everything had a code and a place. When it came time for her to move, in less than 30 days, she was able to get it done without a single hair out of place. 

That’s where we need to be in our paperwork lives. Everyone should have all of their important documents from wills to bills organized and easy to find for those of us that get left behind to handle the details. My father had dementia the last 5 years of his life and kept horrible records but I was blessed to have a good friend of his who was also an attorney handle all of it for me. I hate to think where I would be if he hadn’t stepped in and helped me. He also took it upon himself at that time to organize my mother’s documents. How was I supposed to know that you would need a certificate to bury someone or have the forethought to keep cash aside in my name to pay for immediate expenses after death? 

The other point to make with this blog is that both Candy and I paid someone to help get things organized. Most of us are not organizationally minded or have the time so paying someone to help is well worth the time and expense. Here’s to a year of organized paperwork in 2012.

Guest Blogger Samantha Young, Experienced Executrix & Regional Manager for Nurses Unlimited

As of January 1, 2012, paper savings bonds are no longer available for sale at financial institutions. Instead, electronic savings bonds in Series EE and I are available for purchase from TreasuryDirect.^® The move to electronic transactions will save American taxpayers an estimated $120 million over the next five years according to the Bureau of the Public Debt.

Investors will benefit from this easy and convenient way to purchase and manage bonds. They will stay organized without having to worry about misplacing, losing, or storing paper certificates.

Investors can open a TreasuryDirect^® account for free and perform these functions:

• Buy, manage, and redeem Series EE and I electronic savings bonds.
• Convert Series EE and I paper savings bonds to electronic through the SmartExchange^® feature
• Purchase electronic savings bonds as a gift.
• Enroll in a payroll savings plan for purchasing electronic bonds.
• Invest in other Treasury securities—bills, notes, bonds, and TIPS (Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities).

To open a TreasuryDirect^® account, you will need to provide personal information, including the following:

• Social Security Number
• E-mail address
• U.S. address of record
• Bank account and routing number.

Then you will be asked to choose:

• Password
• Password reminder
• Personalized image
• Caption, and
• Security questions.

You must have a Web browser that supports 128-bit encryption for secure transactions.

 

Saturday January 28th from 10 am to 2 pm

   The Austin Chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers is hosting its sixth annual Clear Your Clutter Day as a community service event. The event will be held on Saturday January 28th from 10 am to 2 pm at Bethany United Methodist Church, 10010 Anderson Mill Road (78750). 

   Bring one car-load of: junk; papers to be shredded; flattened moving boxes; used cell phones, computers, or other electronics; and durable medical equipment such as walkers, wheelchairs,  crutches, canes, commodes, and shower seats.

   There will be a prize for the Strangest Item. The 2011 prize went to the proud (former) owner of the rustically “Austin Weird” wooden cactus. 

   Important Notes: We cannot accept flammable, corrosive, toxic, poisonous, reactive, or explosive items, including paint and batteries. You will receive a certificate of shredding for papers to be shredded off-site.

   Download flyer with details.

A friend of mine attended a family holiday gathering a few years ago. John particularly wanted to see his cousin Mary who had cancer and was not expected to live more than a few months. Mary spoke frankly of her illness and life expectancy. She asked John if he would help her daughter Sally “when the time came.” John assured Mary that he would.

The time did come. Sally called John to share the sad news. But there was more. Mary had named Sally and John co-executors! During the process of settling Mary’s affairs, John came to understand that Mary had added him as co-executor as a check on Sally lest she be unduly influenced by her husband.

There is a lesson in this story. By the way, all my stories do come with lessons. If someone asks you to serve as an executor or to “help” settle their affairs, start asking questions now. If you ask someone to serve as your executor, prepare your executor to do the job.

Think over your conversations during the holidays. Is there someone you need to ask questions now?

   Buy MailStop.Envelopes from Catalog Choice. You simply collect and send in mailing labels. The prepaid MailStop Envelopes make perfect practical gifts for your friends, family, and co-workers. Plus they save trees and reduce clutter by stopping unwanted mail. 

   I purchased two online last Monday and received my envelopes by the end of the week. So there’s still time!

   Note: While you do not have to go online to use MailStop Envelopes, a valid e-mail address is required to use the service. You will receive an e-mail when your envelope is processed. Catalog Choice does not sell, rent, or exchange personal information about its members.  

Organizing Tip: Keep receipts together

   ‘Tis the season for shopping and gift giving. Get gift receipts when you can. Keep your paper receipts in an envelope or a plastic document holder. The latter are larger, come in bright colors, and are harder to lose. Keep your electronic receipts and confirmation e-mails in a separate folder on your desktop. Set a calendar reminder for January 31st to shred and delete.

   If tracking all your receipts seems like too much bother, you can always make or bake gifts. Homemade gifts are more likely to be treasured and are seldom duplicated.

   The lowly receipt is such a common document that most of us don’t even think of it as a document. We toss them out or let them accumulate in our wallets, pockets, drawers, or car seats. But a document it is, with the details of your purchase.

   Holiday surveys conducted by Consumer Reports have found that less than half of adults usually give gift receipts, half don’t check a store’s return policy before buying, and more than a third don’t check online retailers’ policies. 

   However, if you think you may need proof of purchase or there is a possibility you may need to return an item, your receipt is the document you need. While some stores will accept a return without a receipt or use your credit card to look up a transaction, other stores still require an original paper receipt. Before you accept an electronic receipt, Consumer Reports recommends that you verify that it will be valid for returns, rebates, or other purposes that require proof of purchase. 

   Documenting online purchases is easier because each purchase generates an order number that is more readily tracked. Beware that some stores have different policies for online and in-store purchases. When in doubt, read the back of the paper receipt or go to the retailer’s Web site.