Comments on: The Why and How of a Household Inventory http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/ Financial talk for the rest of us Sat, 16 Feb 2013 01:14:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Parker Lisle http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-447083 Parker Lisle Tue, 23 Dec 2008 10:33:12 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-447083 Try doing it the online way. RedLightDepositBox.Com has many tools to help with your inventory. Also has a way to help in crime prevention that lets police and specialty stores search items as they come in to see who the rightful owner is and if stolen then instantly call the police and return your items back to you.

]]> By: Just finished moving http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-265055 Just finished moving Sun, 04 May 2008 14:03:53 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-265055 We did this as we unpacked all the boxes, it took 3 times as long but we now have pictures and written documentation of our stuff, even stuff we forgot we had.

]]> By: Ann at mommysecrets http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-209305 Ann at mommysecrets Sat, 22 Mar 2008 19:53:05 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-209305 Great post – I’ll be linking to it shortly. This is something every household manager needs to think about!

]]> By: Sharon http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203911 Sharon Wed, 12 Mar 2008 21:10:33 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203911 Getting replacement value insurance is the ONLY sane way to go. When we were first married, almost all of our furniture and virtually all of our “stuff” was either off the trash piles in the City (NYC was great for wonderful cast-offs!) or things we brought from home. I figured if we had a claim we would be paying the insurance company if we got depreciated value. Having the insurance company depreciate everything will really cost you, and if you get hit with a hailstorm or something and have to pay for the depreciated 12-year-old roof will cost you far more than the small difference in premium. Sharon

]]> By: Misty http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203868 Misty Wed, 12 Mar 2008 19:43:43 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203868 As a former insurance claims representative (yep, I was the one that would pay your claim!) this is the BEST thing that you can do to protect yourself.
As a claim rep, it is actually our job to ensure that you are getting paid for what you had. Contrary to popular belief, the insurance company wants to pay your claim fairly, however you would be amazed at the stuff that people claim they have (and there is no way that they do)!!
The best thing to do is take a video or picture of each room in the house and for electronics, make sure that you have documentation of the model # etc.

]]> By: Funny about Money http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203827 Funny about Money Wed, 12 Mar 2008 18:13:12 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203827 I can’t afford a video camera but I do have a regular digital camera. To keep the inventory up to date — and to preclude the possibility of having some insurance company claim that something not on an out-of-date inventory didn’t exist — snap a photo any time you bring home any purchase of any value.

With Mac’s iPhoto you can congregate all the inventory pix in one folder, which can be burned to a CD along with an Excel or Quicken file listing your loot’s value. Otherwise, manually move all your inventory JPEGs to a single subdirectory, for the same purpose. Keep a copy of the CD at your office or at a friend’s house, so that it will not be lost in a fire.

]]> By: Adam Messinger http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203814 Adam Messinger Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:42:56 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203814 Whoops. Looks like WordPess includes the trailing period as part of those links I posted, which keeps them from working. If you want to download the templates I mentioned, you’ll need to remove the period.

]]> By: Adam Messinger http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203813 Adam Messinger Wed, 12 Mar 2008 17:39:43 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203813 I haven’t updated my home inventory in ages. Thanks for the reminder to get back to it!

The tool I’ve used to track my inventory is a free Microsoft Access 2000 template from the MS Office site: http://tinyurl.com/2g7m7y. (Note: the crazy-long Microsoft web address was shortened with an online service called TinyURL.)

This Access file will produce scary error messages about “unsafe expressions” when opened in newer versions of Access, but that’s only because it interacts with the computer’s file system to store photos. Tell Access *not* to block these expressions, or the database won’t work properly. There’s also a version for Access 2007, which I assume solves this problem: http://tinyurl.com/2hpo8b.

If you don’t have Access, this Excel spreadsheet might do for a minimal list: http://tinyurl.com/29llq8. It should also work in other software like OpenOffice.org.

I’ll have to look into the program provided by knowyourstuff.org. I’d recommend that anyone thoroughly investigate such a program before feeding it a list of their valuables; these days, the web is full of malware. I could imagine such a program being very useful to unscrupulous ad companies (for targeted spamming) or organized crime. I find it troubling, for example, that there’s no privacy policy on that program’s website.

]]> By: fathersez http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203763 fathersez Wed, 12 Mar 2008 15:43:03 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203763 Another very sensible thing that I have not done.

Thanks for sharing

]]> By: reulte http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203615 reulte Wed, 12 Mar 2008 10:31:40 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203615 I’d second the idea of appraising jewelry (1) of known but unconfirmed value and (2) of suspected value.

Some jewelers will appraise based on a standard hourly fee – and, of course, you can always ask how they do the appraisals. You might want to let the know you’re doing this for insurance purposes. The jeweler and I sat down and he even pointed out some things I had brought which he thought did not merit appraising (although I did want one of them appraised anyway because it was unique).

]]> By: Mary http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203436 Mary Wed, 12 Mar 2008 04:02:39 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203436 I will have to put this on my to do list. Now, I just wish I had kept a lot more receipts.

]]> By: snow_drops http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203385 snow_drops Wed, 12 Mar 2008 02:05:22 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203385 @elizabeth
Thanks for the tips. I will definitely get them appraised then. I didn’t know you can do that here..

]]> By: Michael http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203194 Michael Tue, 11 Mar 2008 21:19:07 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203194 John, I would please like a further explanation of why it is a bad idea. I’d like to know how agents know which companies won’t fight and which will, especially if a client owns or doesn’t own something unusual.

]]> By: Susan http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203145 Susan Tue, 11 Mar 2008 19:58:55 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203145 Another way to keep a home inventory is to simply keep an in/out list. Everytime you make a purchase, keep the reciept and at the end of the month, put all these items on your in/out list. Additionally, take a note when you throw something out or give something away. Of course, you’d want to be reasonable and only include items over a certain dollar value (for example $20).

]]> By: naveedsmind http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203120 naveedsmind Tue, 11 Mar 2008 19:26:19 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203120 Pray tell – how long did this project take you?

]]> By: elizabeth http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203107 elizabeth Tue, 11 Mar 2008 19:13:18 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203107 @snow_drops
Get your jewelry appriased NOW!!! That is the only way to ensure that you have it covered properly. Find a good and well respected jewelry store and the cost is about $40 per item. There is usually a cap ($200) too so if you have a lot do it all at one time. Then take the actual items and the aprasials to the insurance agent. Then they will keep a copy of the apprasial and adjust your policy accordingly. Our actual renter’s policy limits jewels to $1500 total and no more than $500 an item. My ring and my husbands watch are over that so they needed a seperate policy. Most anything with a diamond in it needs a seperate policy…notice to all married guys (Your wife’s ring is important to her; make sure you can replace it if you have to.)
:)

]]> By: Nicole http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203065 Nicole Tue, 11 Mar 2008 18:28:16 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203065 Speaking as an insurance agent – it is well worth the hour or two to do this! A couple tips I would add: Do not to forget the garage, talk to insurance agent about storing a copy of the list. While I can only speak for my office, we are more than happy to store a copy of our client’s lists. It also provides a good opportunity for your agent to suggest coverage that may benefit your situation.

Also, someone above asked what the base amount is for personal property. With most companies in Michigan it is a percentage of your dwelling coverage (50% to 80%, depending on the policy).

I have heard of claims adjusters bringing a Sears catalog with them to meet with homeowners who had lost everything. It helps them recall the everyday things like how many sets of sheets were in the back of the linen closet or that ugly serving platter that hasn’t been touched since opening the wedding gifts.

]]> By: snow_drops http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203029 snow_drops Tue, 11 Mar 2008 17:50:59 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203029 Elizabeth’s post reminded me… What about jewelry? In my culture, parents give jewelry at graduations, weddings, birthdays, etc. My mom bought me some from back home as well. Back home, jewelry does not come with certificate.

How do you document those? Will picture/video be enough? Will the insurance company acknowledge that you have diamond necklace and not glass necklace?

]]> By: elizabeth http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203007 elizabeth Tue, 11 Mar 2008 17:30:39 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203007 After doing our inventory, we talked to our insurance agent. I would totally recommend taking time to do this.
We lowered our Renter’s policy by $10,000 and then put two pieces of family jewelry on a rider policy. We don’t have much stuff and what we do have isn’t that expensive (or are family hand-me-downs), but the jewelry is virtually irreplacable. It would have to be custom done to be replaced so we insured that at a high level. It might be cheaper to get a rider for a category than to make your whole policy replacement value.
I know if our apartment burns that I would get enough back to start over.

]]> By: guinness416 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203006 guinness416 Tue, 11 Mar 2008 17:30:03 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/03/11/the-why-and-how-of-a-household-inventory/#comment-203006 I would second Michael’s question. I already have a list and photos/video, which we did when we bought our current house (the easiest time to do it, by the way!) but have read a few articles online that speak to it being ESSENTIAL to have receipts etc.

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