A life-admin checklist you can make your own

Contracts and other things with no due date

Internet and phone plans, and fixed-rate energy plans, often jump in price when the promotional term ends. Their end dates belong on the list, even though nothing is “due.”

A flexible spending account balance expires at the end of the plan year. And many countries want six months left on your passport, so one that expires in eight months is already a problem for a trip in three.

Smoke alarms need testing every month and replacing after ten years, according to the NFPA link below. We’d bet the monthly test is the item on this list that gets done least.

Give yourself time to compare renewal prices

Each item shows how often it usually comes up. If your letter or manual gives a date, use that instead. If your dentist says twelve months, go with your dentist.

For items that repeat every few months, “Done today” sets the next date for you. Press it on the smoke alarm test, and the next one is a month from today.

Items with no fixed interval, like your passport, show days left instead. The only right date is the one printed on the document.

The view covers 90 days. Any shorter and a yearly renewal shows up too late to compare quotes. Any longer and the list is most of the year.

Items to uncheck if you rent or don’t drive

If you rent, the heating service, gutters, dryer vent and water heater are your landlord’s job. Uncheck them, and keep the lease end date.

If you don’t drive, the whole Vehicle section goes. Nothing breaks if you leave an item checked; the count at the top just stops meaning anything.

Start with the insurance renewals and the passport

Those are the items where being late costs you money. The monthly items can wait: press “Done today” the next time you do one.

Leave a date blank rather than guessing. The policy document or your account page has it. The checklist only needs the date, never the account number.