Get Your Paperwork Organized

Every year it hits me first week of December that the year is coming to an end. In January a new year begins and I will have all these grand ambitions. By March I already feel like the year is over again. There is something about New Years being a fresh start and you really think "this is going to be my year." And to much of our own surprise we tend to achieve a lot of what we set out to do, by simply doing and not really planning.

Since the New Year motivates us to get sorted, I thought I would do a little newsletter on paperwork organization. I did a video a few years back on getting your paperwork in order for the bank. Those were the good days when interest rates were manageable.

Having your paperwork organized is really the make or break for many business owners. Real estate is no different, if not more so crucial. My understanding of paperwork organization is more so getting it scanned in and saved to the infamous "cloud". It is much easier to have your documents scanned and ready for access pretty much anytime you need them. Or just know that if you ever need that old letter you can find it. Plus you then can get rid of all that paper!

To help you along with your New Year's resolution to get organized, I have created a 4 step procedure.

Step 1- Pick Your Storage

If you have email you likely have storage. Gmail and Outlook both come with their own cloud storage. Gmail has the Google Drive and Outlook has One Drive. You can also use iCloud, Dropbox, or store your files on your computer with a backup external harddrive. I prefer sources like Google Drive, One Drive or Dropbox because it saves the files off the computer, freeing up the computer storage.

Step 2- Create Your Folders

The possibilities are endless with folders. For property management I would create separate folders for each building. Within that building's folder I would create these separate folders:

• Bank Statements (Separated by Year)
• Corporate Docs (EIN, Articles of Organization/ Incorporation, Bank Account Info, Statements of Information, W9, Business Licenses, Operating Agreement)
• Deeds
• Section 8 (If you have Section 8 tenants I like to have a folder that has all the Section 8 Notices in One, even better Separated by Tenant)
• Insurance (Separated by Year, further Separate by Type, ie. property, flood, workers comp, umbrella)
• Leases (Separate Old Leases, Rental Applications/ Screening Reports, Tenant Provided Insurance)
• Mortgage Docs (Separate by Year)
• Notices (Copies of all notices served, Separated by Year)
• Photos (For each set of photos make a folder and name the folder ("Building- Nature of Photos- Date") ie (Main St- Annual Inspection-1.1.24)
• R&M (Separate by Year, for further organization separate by work order)
• Resident Manager (If applicable, include their contract, job duties, resume, and time sheets)
• Service Contracts (Separate by Type ie. elevator, pest control, landscaping)
• Rent Registry (Separate by Year, include the annual rent registry certificates if applicable)
• Property Tax Bills (Separated by Year)
• Purchase Documents (Grant deed, all due diligence files provided, purchase agreement, buyer final closing statement)

There are so many more folders you could create, but for most landlords that covers the main ones. How to name files is a whole other newsletter on its own (and will make this newsletter too long).

Step 3- Ease Into It

Pick a starting building- I would say the one with the fewest units. From there take it slow. Once you picked the storage medium (ie. Dropbox) create the Building's Folder and in that folder create all the subfolders.

Take a break (preferably with snacks).

In each subfolder create the applicable year folder, start with 2024.

Take another break.

If you have paperwork that you need to scan separate that into piles based on the subfolders, ie. property tax bills, insurance renewal info. Scan and organize one pile at a time.If your files are retrievable online, download and save them to the folder.

Do one subfolder at a time and make sure to take breaks. The balance is to not burn yourself out and quit.

Step 4- Maintain the System

If this is a whole new system for you then start it going forward, ie. January 2024. Once you get a feel for your organization system, then go back and try to archive all your older data from previous years.

The key is to keep the system going and file things as they come in. Each month check that you are saving the files you need to be saving. As soon as an insurance renewal comes up create the new folder and save the policy declarations and any renewal invoices right to that folder. Done. Repeat for other files.

While it may seem like an overwhelming endeavor, once you start you will likely see it through. In the future you will find it far less stressful dealing with your affairs if you have the paperwork you need organized and readily available.

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The information in this post is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this post should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.