Help with expense-tracking & receipts?

[AllisonF203238]

I care for my niece, who has a disability. I am saving all of her receipts for her benefits, but I

sometimes lose them and it feels like since Covid, there is paper ALL OVER the house, and I’m mixing up her receipts/paperwork and my own. Has anyone else dealt with this, and any ideas for cutting through the paper clutter to get organized? 😞

[SuzannaC605089]

Paper organization is always a challenge/struggle.  I have a couple of thoughts to consider in addition to trying to "cloudify" your records, since not all agencies accept printed copies of cloud records.

First look at a professsional report portfolio.  Basically the same as a poly 2 pocket folder with a number of sheet protector type pockets inside with ability to label. Different colors help keep individual records, or provider or pharmacy separate from the others.  Similar to expanding envelopes but easier to see what is there and more portable.

You ca  also buy smaller planner sized binders,  Enter pockets, protectors, envelopes as you prefer and keep them that way.  You can use a section for new unfiled or not yet entered into the cloud and then put them into the section you prefer. That way depending on who is receiving services, you put the new receipts into a "catch all" in their folder/book, they don't fly around the home and are together for organizing when you have time to sit and get it done  

[Anonymous]

Hi @AllisonF203238 were you successful? Angela

[Anonymous]

Excellent suggestions @postman29 and @OldMarriedMan and @PeterS668833 😁 Angela

[OldMarriedMan]

I use simplifi by Quicken to manage my dad's finances. https://simplifimoney.com/

I have a folder(s) where I keep all paperwork, but I try to do everything online in the cloud. I tag all bank transactions and run a report monthly to track expenses. I like it because it grabs all bank transactions from credit cards, loans and bank accounts. He still does stuff and it helps me to keep an eye on his spending. He also was a victim of identity theft and occasionally I still see fraudulent charges. 

[postman29]

The best way that I found to organize receipts was to purchase a lot of file folders, label each one, and put them in a metal holder for large folders or a large file cabinet. I was my dad's caregiver for 11 years and it worked for me. We are now caregivers for my wife's parents and she uses the same system. The amount of receipts, Medicare statements, bank statements, and other government paperwork can be overwhelming. This system works. I wish you the best of luck.

[PeterS668833]

This might suit your needs. 

How to organize medical paperwork