Family Financial Statement

If you’re the family billpayer and bookkeeper — and you died tomorrow — could anyone else in your family find the checkbook and bank statements? Would they know whether you have life insurance, and with which company? Would they know where to send the rent or mortgage payment, and what the amount should be? If you have a stockbroker or lawyer, does anyone else in your family know who these professionals are?

If the answers to any of these questions are NO, you need to put together a Family Financial Statement. What’s a Family Financial Statement? Well, in the first place, let’s look at what it’s not:

It doesn’t have to be complicated.
It’s not just a fill-in-the-blank form
It’s not just a list of bank names and account numbers — though that would be a pretty good place to start.

A Family Financial Statement is a description of your family’s financial affairs. It’s a word-processing document you make on the computer, that you keep updated at least a couple of time a year. That way, if something should happen to you, the loved ones you leave behind will find it easier to pick up the pieces and keep on going.

A Family Financial Statement doesn’t have to be fancy, and it doesn’t have to be complicated. It just needs to be accurate. Use the guidelines below to put yours together. And I guarantee you this — just doing it will be a learning experience. Even if you are the person who balances the family checkbook, this exercise will help you become more organized and educated about your family’s finances. Among other things, it will teach you the importance of good record keeping.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s get started! But before we begin, here are two important notes:

1. After you create your Family Financial Statement, don’t keep it to yourself! Instead, print out copies and give them to your spouse, the executor of your will, older children, and anybody else who needs to have an accurate understanding of your family’s financial affairs. And every time you update the statement, print it out again and give updated copies to these same people.

2. The description below is written for a married couple; that’s why it says “husband” and “wife.” But any people whose financial affairs are connected together also need a Financial Statement. Examples could include: unmarried couples who have joint bank accounts and own property together, a parent and adult child(ren) who live together, and so on. You get the idea. Now let’s get started!

1. Personal Data

Husband: Birth date; social security number
Wife: Birth date; social security number
Children: Birth date; social security number

2. Wills

Husband’s on file with (lawyer’s and/or executor’s name and address)
Wife’s on file with (lawyer’s and/or executor’s name and address)

3. Death Benefits

Husband’s life insurance: Policy number, company, amount, agent’s name and contact information, where is policy kept?
Wife’s life insurance: Policy number, company, amount, agent’s name and contact information, where is policy kept?
Other life insurance policies: Related to employment, union, fraternal organizations, credit cards, travel life insurance. Provide policy numbers, companies, amounts, contact information, where are policies kept?
Pension: Contact information to arrange survivor benefits (if applicable), where are records kept?
IRAs, Keoghs, 401(k) plans: Who is beneficiary, account numbers, mutual fund names, broker’s name and contact information.

Where the Money Is

Bank accounts: Institutions, account numbers, approximate balances, where are records kept?
Investment accounts: Institutions, account numbers, approximate balances, broker name and contact information, where are records kept?
U.S. Savings bonds: Where are these kept?
Other investments: Gold, jewelry, collectibles. Approximate values and locations where kept.

Home Information

Real property: Where is deed kept?
Mortgage or rental information: Account number (if applicable), amount of monthly payment, contact information for mortgage company or rental agent, where are records kept?
Homeowners or renter’s insurance: Policy number, company, amount, agent’s name and address.
Vacation home, timeshare condominium, etc: Provide information as needed, where are records kept?

Auto and Vehicle Information

Where are cars, trucks, boats, etc., located (if not at principal residence)?
Titles and registrations: Where are these kept?
Auto and vehicle loans: Loan numbers, amounts of monthly payment, contact information for loan companies, where are records kept?

7. Credit Cards

Names, account numbers, contact information, where are records kept?

Other

NOTE: Every family’s circumstances are different, so every Family Financial Statement will also be different. Here are some examples of subjects you may want to talk about in yours:

Children’s college or private school arrangements.
Parents in nursing homes or assisted living facilities.
Business matters: If you are self-employed, have a part-time home business, do consulting or freelance work, etc., you need to provide some details. Where are records kept, is there a shop or office, what should survivors do, who are major customers, names of accountants and lawyers, etc.
Do you have a self-storage unit? Provide the location, lock combination, monthly payment, contact information for rental office, etc.
Advice about future finances, getting new health insurance, applying for Social Security survivor benefits, etc.
Funeral arrangements, location of family burial plot, etc.
Children’s bank accounts and other assets.
Personal loans or other financial obligations.
Family trusts, tax shelters, etc.

AUTHOR CREDIT: Brooke Stauffer is executive director of standards and safety for the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), and the author of several technical books including User’s Guide to the National Electrical Code. But he also writes about many other subjects, including personal finance, for magazines such as Money, Kiplinger’s, Entrepreneur, and Inc. This article is based upon an article that Brooke wrote some years ago for Money magazine.