The kids are off to school - is it finally time to schedule your assets?

Monday August 21, 2017 - Insurance
You’d do anything to protect your family - from packing their lunches with foods that were “secretly” healthy, to touring around the state to schools that may have a better emergency preparedness plan than the rest. You’re a rockstar parent, and you’re not going to let anything happen to your family - which is why you have home insurance! But, there’s a little known tool that has the potential to save you months of headache and heartbreak, and the best part? It’s absolutely free. I’m talking about Scheduling your Assets. Scheduling is the process of itemizing all of the belongings in your house, and can be done in a simple list - or even better a Google Sheet. By keeping track of your belongings on a cloud based application like Google Sheets, you’ll be able to retrieve this list even if your computer is damaged in an emergency. These schedules don’t have to be complicated by any means, but should feature a few key components. First, a running list of items- preferably organized by room. Next; each item should have the date it was purchased, the store it was purchased from, and the purchase price. A good practice is to also include any warranties or protection plans that you have on those items, and the term in which they’re covered.

We’ve put together an example schedule template and attached the link below! Feel free to take a look, and download it for your own use!

Schedule of Assets Template Now that we’re all on the same page as to what a Schedule of Assets is, you’re probably asking yourself - why would I go through all of the trouble of doing this? Well there’s countless reasons ranging from tax benefits to estate planning, but we’ve put together a list of three major reasons that should be enough to convince even the most carefree individual to put down their phone and start scheduling.

The Inevitable Insurance Claim

We all get it - eventually something is going to happen to our home. Our little piece of paradise can only weather so many storms, snowfalls, and wild animals before eventually something is going to happen. This is the reason that we help protect our home and our loved ones by purchasing homeowners insurance. When disaster strikes, one of the most trying parts of the claims process is identifying all of the belongings lost and then trying to assess what price was paid for it. By keeping a log of the items that matter most you’re able to stay ahead of a loss, as well as give your entire claims team the information they need to help restore your piece of paradise back to normal.

The Dreaded Home Break-In

There are only so many years of birthdays, holidays, and Black Friday sales we can have before eventually one of our belongings becomes misplaced, or worse- stolen. Whether it be the theft of a few items from the backyard or a full blown home break-in; there’s a heavy cost associated with loss due to theft. Take a moment and picture your living room - can you name each and every item within it? Now can you recall the store you purchased them at, and what the price you paid was? Now if you’re like the average American, you probably recalled about 5-8 items with varying accuracy - just imagine trying to do the same with your kitchen. Having an updated schedule of assets removes the guessing game after a break in- giving you and the authorities the power restore your belongings and peace of mind.

The Overdue Fall Cleaning

We’ve all been here before; Summer’s finally wrapping up and suddenly you realize - 'how did you get all of this stuff?’ It’s almost impossible to keep track of all of the things a family accumulates while they’re driving back and forth between football practice and piano recitals. So now that quiet has finally begun to settle over your little slice of paradise - it’s time for some fall cleaning. By scheduling your families assets, you’re giving yourself an opportunity to determine whether those cheesy snow globes you purchased on vacation 10 years ago really are worth the space they’re taking up, or if that unorthodox number of Beanie Babies are actually ever going to cash out or if it’s finally time to donate them. All the while you’re creating less assets to schedule, and less clutter for your life!
Have any other great uses for a Schedule of Assets? We’d love to hear about them! Let us know on Facebook and Instagram what your scheduling routine looks like!