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The original was posted on /r/lifeprotips by /u/Furth_Turnip on 2025-12-22 05:29:35+00:00.
Instead of a New Year's resolution, do these three things once a year. It should only take an hour or two, and can potentially save enormous stress later.
- Photograph every room in your house.
Open every drawer, closet, cabinet and photograph those too. If there's ever a major loss (fire, flood) this makes the insurance claim exceptionally easier. If you don't believe me, try to itemize every single item you own from memory.
- Add a beneficiary to every account.
And verify your beneficiary designations annually, regardless of your age. Bank accounts, retirement accounts, everywhere you have money. And, you have to do it for every "pot", not just every institution. Open a new CD at your bank? That needs its own beneficiary. Start a new investment at your robo-advisor? That needs its own beneficiary.
A will only tells the executor where you want things to go. But it still has to go through probate, and probate can take up to 18 months and skim off up to 7% of the total value! If you have a beneficiary, it goes straight to them with little delay and no cost.
- Update your contact information on all accounts.
Mainly, check that your mailing address and email is correct. When my parent became disabled, I didn't know where all their bills and accounts were. Getting mail/email notices of unpaid bills or payment reminders was really helpful towards tracking things down. While you're at it, set up notifications for transactions, payment reminders, and renewal reminders.
I learned these the hard way after having to suddenly take care of a disabled parent and aging grandparent. I now do these for myself annually, even as a young adult. It's never too early to prepare!
Bonus tip: designate a durable (financial) POA and medical POA before you actually need it. I can't say enough how much easier things would have been to set up power of attorney for all my parent's accounts while they were still mentally capable.