My good friend rialtus posted some good advice last evening over on Facebook, in which he said that the end of the year is a good time to do the following:
- Check for unclaimed property at www.unclaimed.org.
- Get a copy of your free credit report via www.annualcreditreport.com (to which I’ll add: given you get one free report a year, and there are three services, check the services on a four-month cycle, i.e., Equifax in January, Transunion in May, Experian in September)
- Check your credit score through a service such as CreditKarma
As the son of an accountant, I’ll also add that the end of the year is the time for various tax saving ideas, such as:
- Remembering to donate that junk cluttering your garage. Remember to get a receipt, or use a service such as the National Council for Jewish Women (which in Los Angeles, itemizes and sends you a receipt).
- Remember to make any end of the year donations before 12/31.
- If you need that extra boost of a month of deductable interest, pay your mortgage before 1/1.
- Make any self-directed IRA contributions, which I seem to recall are due in the first quarter to be deductable.
I’ll also note that this weekend is a great time to organize your receipts and bill paying system for the 2010 calendar year, and to pull out receipts for your accountant for your 2009 return. Now is also the time to start that file to collect the 1099s and other tax information you’ll start receiving in January.
So, what year end advice do you have to share?
