It’s yard sale time in Franklin TN. While preparing for our Fieldstone Farms neighborhood yard sale last week, I once again realized how much stuff (or junk) we all have. It also made me think about if there were a catastrophe, would I be able to produce a list of all our household possessions, so we can receive proper compensation by our insurance company?
You probably have thousands of “things”. If it all suddenly disappeared, could you make a comprehensive list of what you had and what it would cost to replace it? If your whole house went up in flames, or was blown away by a tornado, your insurance adjustor may ask you to do just that. How prepared are you?
Ideally, an inventory of your household items, consisting of words, receipts, and photos, is essential to getting all the benefits that are due you. If this sounds like a whole bunch of work to do, at least start out with taking video of all contents in your house, narrating facts and values about your stuff as you go from room to room. There are even video services that will do this for you. Put your tape or DVD in a secure place other than your home, like a safe deposit box at your bank.
Then, make a commitment to prepare a written inventory of your things, starting with the highest value items, and work your way down. Keep this list with your video. Of course, you save your receipts/appraisals for major purchases, right??? Good! Don’t forget to update your list as you add or purge items through the years. I’ve got inventory forms and home organizer software that I’ll be glad to give you – just call me.
Let’s hope you never have to make use of your inventory list, but getting this done should help you sleep better at night!
