The Family Binder: Why You Need One & How To Do It (Quickly!)

How to make a rocking home family binder that helps every adult in the house have instant access to important info.

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For me, there’s little I find more satisfying than an organizing project.

So after I got sick of looking at my important papers stacked on the table, I tackled this binder.

What’s a family binder?

It’s a binder where you keep photo copies of all you important info so you can find it all in a glance. If you have to dip out quickly, leave your affairs to someone else, or get account numbers quickly… this is the place you go.

This is a relatively quick and oh so terribly satisfying way to consolidate your family’s business and feel organized and in charge in the process. There are many ways to go about it, but I wanted our binder to be a quick reference guide with copies (not originals) that could be referred to quickly for any and all important family information.

Here’s why a family binder is a good idea

The family binder is sort of a command central for all your administrative accounts and info.

You can share this info with your spouse, family member, advisor, etc.

Often, the family member who does the bills or finances is way more in the loop than the other spouse. The bills… if you pay the bills, does your husband know who the service providers are?

If so, does he know the account or policy numbers? If your husband takes care of this information, do you? I do the household administration in our family, as admin is my strength.

Now, my husband keeps in the loop as much as possible but doesn’t necessarily know the days the direct debits come out or our account numbers without digging through files. This way, I’ve created a tab for our various bills and accounts so if either of us need to know a number in a flash, we can flip to it quickly.

It prevents one spouse from feeling in the dark or not being able to answer important questions because the other spouse isn’t home.

You’ll have your info there at a quick glance

Think about this, if you lost your wallet tomorrow would you even know who to begin calling after the DMV and the bank?

A better way, at least I think, is to keep a section in your binder with photocopies of your wallet’s contents you’ll be able to quickly get your affairs in order and will have all the information in one place.

Need to get everyone’s passport or driver’s licenses at a glance? You don’t need to go grab your wallet… it’s right in the binder.

Great place for things pertaining to children’s school and activities.

With permission slips, field trips, menus and school fees on the mind, this is a great place to keep it all together.

By putting the family binder in a central location you’ll visit regularly, you’ll know what’s happening when and what you need to do for things to flow smoothly.

You might include coaches’ names, numbers, class syllabus, etc. in the appropriate file.

How to gather all the documents

I recommend either using your phone to scan or printer to copy. Make copies of your documents, bills, statements, etc. so you have the account number and company name easily accessible.

What to keep in your family binder?

This isn’t to be used as a filing cabinet, per se, but as a place to store important info in snippets.

Basic documents and certification

• Driver’s license
• SSN cards
• Passport numbers
• Visa, immigration, citizenship information
• Birth certificates
• Marriage license
• Will and Testament, Living Will

Accounting, Retirement, Debt & Bank Information

• Bank statements
• Bank card information
• Savings account info
• Investment info (including broker info)
• Stock info (including broker info)
• Insurance information
• Mortgage or rent info
• Emergency contacts
• Automobile information
• Home Business Docs
• Budgeting / Calendar / Task List / Everything packet (here)

Utility Info & Regular Bills

• Electricity account information
• Water information
• Internet account
• TV/cable accounts

Extras

• Project lists
• Birthday Lists (here)
• Christmas present tracking list
• Parenting Goals / things to teach the kids
• A gardening journal or notebook
• Username and password logs (here)
• List of books you want to read
• Go to recipes or ones that require specific ratios (like freezer food recipes) 

All in all, this shouldn’t take longer than an evening or two to compile since it’s only copies of documents you already have or it’s simply filing papers that have been kept in different areas.

But believe me, after it’s put together you’ll feel like you could be the President of the United States’ executive assistant for how organized and efficient you are.

Read: Best Planners for Moms Based On Personality

A Homemaking Binder Just For You…

If you want to have some guidance to get your home binder going, these printables will help. There are 30+ to suit all your homemaking needs.

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