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Step 1: How Much Monthly Income Do I Have? Step 2: How Much Money Do I Need?
Step 4: How Much Money Do I Have Overall? Twelve Months of Financial MilestonesWorking with Financial and Legal Advisors |
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taking a financial
inventory
In order to uncover all the money and financial assets you have (or your loved one had), you must collect information. If that information is not stored in one, easily accessible location, designate a three-ring binder, desk drawer, or even a box as your central storage place. As you locate papers related to finances, put them in that place. Don’t throw any papers away, no matter how insignificant or old they seem to you at first. You’ll be better prepared to evaluate their importance later. 
Which papers do you need? Look for checkbooks; cancelled checks; account statements from banks, credit unions and credit cards; pay stubs; and copies of insurance policies, among others. If you aren’t sure where these are located, check drawers, cabinets, and favorite hiding places at home. Your loved one’s computer, if you can access it, may hold valuable financial information as well. Also look in your safe deposit box if you have one. (The sidebar on this page explains the process.) If you’re unsure whether you have a safe deposit box, call officials at the banks where you have accounts, as well as other banks in your current and previous neighborhoods and near where your loved one worked. The “Financial Papers Checklist” worksheet will help you identify specific papers and information to look for, but you may not have all the papers listed. For additional assistance, contact individuals and companies with whom your loved one had financial relationships. This chart lists possible contacts.
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Step
3: How Can I Find Out What I Have?
