DETROIT – Spring is the season of renewal and new beginnings.
So, many of us use this time of year to do some spring cleaning of our homes, yards, and garages. It's also a great time to get your financial house in order, and it doesn't take much time to make some moves that can save you money.
You can start small and it's really easy. Take the time to review your monthly bills. Many Americans don't write out a budget, and they might forget some of their smaller monthly payments.
"Things like your gym membership, your Pilates membership, maybe that food Groupon service that you signed up for, maybe your kids extracurricular activities that they're no longer interested in?" said Mary Beth Storjohann, a Certified Financial Planner.
She says small monthly payments can add up, from magazine subscriptions to streaming video. If you're not using them, cancel them.
Are your investments overgrown?
Just like you would prune your bushes or trees in the spring, you might want to trim your financial investments. Spring is a great time to review your bank accounts and other investments. Are you getting the most interest possible? Are you using credit cards that have higher interest rates than you thought?
"Take a look at your clutter. Are you finding you're getting five different 401 k statements? Do you have multiple bank accounts open with zero balances? Is there a way you can consolidate, reduce your anxiety, reduce your stress and save yourself time?" Storjohann said.
Spring is also a good time to get your financial house in order because you've just filed your taxes. You should have recently gathered all your important financial papers and that should help the spring cleaning process. It's also a good time to review your tax planning for next year.
"Now is a good time to just take as look at your pay stub, look at your withholdings. What are your withholdings? Are you claiming single when you're married, are you claiming zero when you can claim two? Now is a great time to check that, reach out to your hr department, get a W-4, you can make that change in two minutes and get that filled out," Storjohann said.
Going digital and start shredding
If you're still storing piles of papers and folders full of personal information, you might think about storing more of your information digitally. Make sure you store the information in a secure computer and backup the data.
Whether you go digital, or stick with the the old-school paper system, you should be going through your files and shredding older documents that you no longer need. You don't want any of that personal information falling into the wrong hands.
If you don't have a shredder at home, you can get creative. You can cut, tear up, or otherwise destroy the documents, throw them into separate bags, and bring them to the dumpster on different days. Taking the extra time will make it impossible for any dumpster divers to recreate your personal data.
Also, you can look for opportunities to shred your documents for free. The Better Business Bureau in Southfield will be having a shred event on Saturday, May 21. The agency hosts a "Secure Your ID" Day twice a year.
This year, the location has changed. In the past, the event has been outside the old BBB office in Southfield. On May 21, the event will be held outside GreenPath Financial Wellness in Farmington Hills.
The BBB partners with Shred-It, GreenPath to offer financial services, and Global Electric Electronic Processing (GEEP) to securely destroy your electronic devices. Shred-It will shred up to three boxes or bags of sensitive paper documents at no charge. There will be a $10 per box/bag charged for additional bags/boxes with proceeds supporting the BBB Educational Foundation.
Global Electric Electronic Processing (GEEP) of Michigan will be on hand to collect computer hard drives, printers, copiers, scanners, desktops, laptops, keyboards, mice, cell phones, DVD and VCR players, etc. free of charge. GEEP does not accept appliances.
Details on the event:
Saturday, May 21, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (You need to be standing in line by 12:30 p.m.)
GreenPath Financial Wellness
36500 Corporate Dr.
Farmington Hills, MI 48331
What to shred and what to save
Fraud experts say the shred day is a good time destroy credit card statements, bills, ATM receipts, pay stubs, and monthly investment statements
However, you should hold onto tax returns for at least seven years. Other documents you should save include: marriage license, lawsuit documents, immigration papers, mortgage paperwork, birth and death certificates, divorce papers, military paperwork, and social security cards.