An inventory of your belongings is simply a list of what you own.
Having an inventory of your belongings is a good idea for a few reasons. For example:
- It can be helpful when determining the value of your estate.
- It can be useful for loved ones if you pass away and they are distributing your possessions.
- It can be useful for insurance claims and reimbursement if things are lost in a house fire, flood, burglary, etc.
Ideally, your inventory would include a list of your possessions with pertinent information like value, purchase price, description, replacement value, warranties, and important receipts or documentation. If a list of your belongings is ever asked for by a court or an insurance company, a written or typed format will probably be required. Does making a thorough inventory list of all you own sound overwhelming?
The quick way to take inventory
If you currently don’t have the time or bandwidth to create an actual list, make a quick video instead. You can use the video to jog your memory and make a more thorough list later.
Here are some tips:
- If you’re really tight on tight on time, make a video of your most valuable possessions first.
- To make your video inventory manageable, record one video per room or space.
- Go slowly.
- Walk through your house room by room, recording everything as you go.
- Start in one corner and pan through an entire room systematically.
- Open drawers and closets. Look in boxes and under beds.
- Describe what you’re filming. Provide information like history or value, and numbers of items if you have multiples.
- Note the condition of your things and whether or not they are in working order.
- Include large household appliances and fixtures, not just your things.
- Zoom in on anything important like brand names, model numbers, serial numbers, etc. Do this especially for the large or very valuable things.
- Don’t forget your basement, garage, attic, safe, workshop, barn, shed, and other storage areas.
Save your inventory videos in your everything file if it’s digital. If your everything file is not digital, include a note in your everything file describing where your videos are stored.