How to Organize Your Home Paperwork

Place a bin with multiple tiers near the entryway where you bring in mail. Sort mail right after you get inside with it, either by the person it's addressed to or by importance. For example, one bin can be for magazines and catalogs, one for bills and other important pieces of mail, one for personal letters and cards and another for junk mail.

Place manuals and relevant warranties in three-ring binders. Punch holes in the manuals and sort them alphabetically or by appliance type. Make a binder for kitchen appliances, one for home-office appliances and another for outdoor items. Store each binder in the appropriate room of the house.

Attach a manila folder or envelope to the door of your house so that children can put any important paperwork from school in it. Check the folder every night for permission slips or memos and return signed documents to your children's school binders.

Assign an accordion file to each family member or set aside several hanging files in your filing cabinet for everyone. Children can store important schoolwork or documents from prior school years in their files. Label each file by category for the adults in the house. For example, have a file for each year's taxes, one for immunization and medical records and another for the details of your house.

Put a paper shredder by the door or in your home office. Dedicate at least one day a week to sorting through mail and other paperwork that comes in. Shred junk mail, outdated sales fliers and any other documents you are positive you no longer need.