Task: How Do You Pay For Your Home?

We know debts are a huge point of stress in many people’s lives, especially when it comes to home payments. The good news: For planning purposes the amount of money it costs doesn’t matter. You just need to identify how you pay for it along with the information we suggest.

Mortgage

Share the following details so it all makes sense to someone who has never been involved in the process:

• Company Name: All the better if you can share the contact info of a specific person if there are any issues
• Account Number: Or any other code to quickly access your account.
• Paperwork Location: Do you have paper documents or digital ones stored on your computer or in the cloud?
• Payment Method: Is it on auto-pay from a bank account? Do you send a check in the mail?
• Online Access: If you use a digital portal to manage your account, share the credentials.

Rent

Renting a place presents a different set of variables:

• Monthly Payment Method: Do you use an online portal (provide the login details); do you mail a check; do you physically drop it off with a building manager?
• Paperwork: Where do you keep your lease?
• Expiration Date: When is the lease up? This might be on the lease, or a different set of paperwork when it’s up for renewal.
• Security Deposit: How much of a security deposit should you be getting back when you vacate?
• Important Contacts: Don’t forget to include the landlord or management company’s info among your contacts.

For Those Living In A Facility

Whether it’s assisted living or a nursing home, it should be treated like a rental:

• Payment Method
• Relevant Paperwork
• A main contact for any issues that arise

If you own your home outright, congrats! This is an easy task for you. But there’s one more thing to consider...

Property Taxes

Here are the details to share:

• How often do you pay? (It’s typically biannual.)
• What county or local government office collects?
• Are you sent a bill through the mail or can you do it online?
• What account do you use to pay it?

The Task

Explain how you pay for your home (taxes included if applicable) and gather up any paperwork that would be helpful for your family if they had to help out. This is also a helpful task for you to do with your parents, so you’d know what to do just in case something happened to them.

Start with writing it out on a notepad or create a digital document. You can also do it in the Home & Property section of your Everplan to get everything in order and easily shared with the people who will need it in one go.

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