Bill paying can be a chore… a painful chore. But it doesn’t have to be. If you are organized and on top of your due dates & your budget, bill paying can be quite fun. Today I am going to help YOU set up a bill paying center in your home, so you too can have fun paying bills. Most of the items you see in my bill paying center are from Office Depot.
Things you will need to create a bill paying center in your home:
1. 3 transparent compartments (incoming bills, outgoing bills, and to file – once the bill is paid)
2. A budget binder to keep track of your due dates & accounts
3. Pens & Pencils
4. Envelopes & Stamps
5. A blank teacher chart (can be found at most craft stores) to use as as a “bill tracker”
6. Small stickers
7. A clip board with record of accounts (phone numbers, etc.)
8. A file accordion for tax receipts
9. Calculator
10. A calendar
11. Bulletin Board (I decorated mine with designer tape)
Because the compartments are transparent, Its easy for me to see what bills are left to pay.
I purchased this calendar below from Barnes & Noble.
A clip board holding the record of accounts is great because if you need to call a creditor, all you have to do is grab the clipboard and take it with you.
A teacher chart works perfect for tracking bills. I add a sticker once I pay a bill. Its just a little reminder & reward for a task completed. 😉 Who doesn’t love a cute sticker? I purchased this chart at Jo Annes.
Any small stickers will work. (Smiley faces, stars, etc…) These are from Jo Annes.
Use a container to hold envelopes, stamps, pens, calculator and your budget binder. When you want to pay bills, you can carry the container to your desk or table.
I separate my tax receipts by month, in this plastic accordion.
The pen container is from the See Jane Work line, at Office Depot.
Im loving my apple sticky note dispenser.
If you have the room, add 2 bins: one for “incoming mail” and one labeled “to shred”. When you have the time, you can go through each.
My bill paying center is located right above my files. Its super easy to file my paid bills away.
Don’t forget to “PIN” this post!
I hope you learned some tips to help get your bill paying organized in a fun way! Happy Organizing!
This post was sponsored by Office Depot. All opinions are my own.
Tags: bill payment center, budget, finances, organizing
Blog, Budget, budgeting, Featured Posts, filing, finances, mail organization, mail station, Office, Office Depot, Organize, organize your finances, Other Spaces, September 2013 Posted in
63 comments
63 comments on “Household “Bill Payment Center”…”
Thank you Toni! As I was digging around on my table (yes, piles on my table), through drawers, and anywhere I could think of looking for pens, checks, and stamps, I decided I needed to keep everything in one spot. Thank you for the great ideas!
This is a good idea that I would like to try. Thanks for the suggestion.
What is the pocket you have the stickers in?
Its from Office Depot 🙂
Where are your file cabinets from? love them!
They are the bedford collection from pottery barn 🙂
Gorgeous and so practical Toni! Becky B.
Thanks Becky! 🙂
I love this. Where did you get the pink sleeve that holds the stickers?
Everything is from office depot 🙂
where did you get the holder for you stickers?
Office Depot. 🙂
I know you use your budget printables in a filofax. Would you put it in the basket instead of notebook? What is the catalog in your incoming mail box?
Can you post a link to the little sticker holder from Office Depot everyone loves? Can’t find it on the website!
Thanks !
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/445857/Post-it-Pockets-5-12-x/
It’s one of the Post-it pockets! There are tons of other sizes as well 🙂
You are my hero… I needed this so much! How much? I just put the finishing touches on mine! Heading to Facebook to post a picture! Thank you Toni for all that you do!
Toni
Did you get the clear containers from Office Depot also?
Wow. This is cute, but a lot of stuff and fluff to pay bills. Ebills via email, online payment through my bank, and an excel spreadsheet to keep track is all I need. No space at all.
Toni, what is the polka dot item in the document holder?
are you referring to the white basket? Those are envelopes
Yes, thank you. Where did you get them from? and also in the white basket are the pink items envelopes as well?
What font did you use for the “tax receipts,” “incoming bills,” and “outgoing bills” labels? I love that font!
So Cute!
This is a great idea. I am working on my budget right now, and this will make sure I am on top of all my bills. Thanks!
Completely brilliant and lovely execution. Unfortunately, I’m unable to pin!!! Ugh! I’ve tried several times with no success. (sigh)
I so need this! Can someone come to my house and just set it all up for me….haha! Really, I am serious. I am so bad at this stuff and it’s hard to make time to get it this organized. We have lots of doctor bills from our twins and all of it totally overwhelms me. I will be creating that cork board area for sure. I know exactly where it will go.
I really love this idea. I really like the “incoming mail”, “to file” and “to shred” bins. I usually pay everything when I get paid as this helps me see what I have left over after for food, gas, entertainment, ext. I deal in cash only for these things, so it’s nice to have everything else paid first.
The package of pens in the basket what brand are they? Do they bleed through paper? I love colorful pens and these caught my eye in your pictures 🙂
Very nice post and helpful to get our bills on track – the most colorful way! 🙂
Loved your colorful files. How do you organize them?
I love this idea. Very cute. I usually pay bills the instant they come in, but if someone else brings in the mail one day, I am sunk because we have no set place to put the bills. (Sometimes I find the bills on the kitchen table, sometimes on the piano bench, etc.) I really need a set place to store and track the bills! Thanks for posting.
Hi Toni. Love it! How do you use the “outgoing bills” slot? Once you’ve paid the bill does it go into the “outgoing bills” slot? or right into the “to file”? I don’t understand the “outgoing bills” slot lol. Thank you for all your wonderful ideas:)
Where did that adorable white basket come from? Love!!
The white basket can be found at Office Depot
What brand of pens are in the big pack in the bin that holds the budget binder?
I too am a fanatic about pens! Thanks! 🙂
The pens are Staedtler. You can get a big pack like she has or a pack of 10. Found mine at Office Depot or Staples. Does anyone recognize the catalog in the incoming mail bin?
What labeller did you use that has pink labels?
What kind of label maker and label tape do you use?
Thanks for the great post!!!
Love this idea! Would it work to also use the clipboard for the monthly bill pay sheet and a due date sheets instead of the big wall one. I have limited space for a bill pay center. I need to get it all together. I have three different areas I keep bill paying things. I do have a large decorative box on my kitchen counter I got from the container store. What would you suggest I keep in that? It seems to be a catch all no matter how hard I try to use folders in it.
This is so cute, it would actually make me WANT to pay bills. Thanks for the inspiration!
You know what everyone pays bill differently, some online, some with no mess at all like someone said above. But most of us, get mail at the house…set it aside…then try to find the bills when we get paid…try to organize things then…because we have money to pay the bills…etc. I like how you plan ahead…to pay the bills…not when they come…but you have a game plan for organizing, paying, filing, everything together in a pretty (not fluff) way. We need the encouragement to organize it, for those of us that this does not come easy, once we see it, then we can think to ourselves…I CAN DO THIS! Love the game plan. Love the ideas, love the easy way you show it all in one place.
Blessings,
Debbie
I love the colors of everything! I AM SO JEALOUS of this whole system. Can you come over and make me a bill pay center! Just know you have inspired me to get busy and create my own! THANKS SO MUCH!
I really think that with every post you share with us on your organization etc. you should create something we can click on and it will bring us to the website of your items displayed so we can purchase it right away. You are our idol and we want to be jut like you 🙂
Wow, it looks fabulous! I could definitely use one of these in my house!
Hi everyone.
The sticker thingy is a 3m Post-It Wall Pocket in medium. They come in various sizes. I just ordered mine from Amazon. (Link below)
Love this idea and this site!!
Thank you!!
http://www.amazon.com/Pockets-Multiple-Assorted-Colors-Design/dp/B005DKN61W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1381352518&sr=8-1&keywords=post+it+wall+pockets
http://www.amazon.com/Pockets-Medium-8-Inches-Assorted-Colors/dp/B004N201LO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1381352535&sr=8-2&keywords=post+it+wall+pockets
This is such a great idea. I’m totally doing this today. I have been having a hard time keeping up with due dates and it’s time for me to take care of it. I just wanted to know what size is the bulletin board? Thank you for this post!
What is the polka dot object behind the “Tax Receipts” accordion? Thank you for all the wonderful ideas! You rock 🙂
those are envelopes
Hi
How do you incorporate the incoming mail “mobile command center” and the incoming mail letter holders(part of your bill payment center) and your mail station? It seems that there would be many different places that mail could be placed – therefore confusion.
Which method would you recommend?
Thank you so much,
Christine
ON the blog, you’ll see the same thing (ie a mail station) done in several different ways. Toni is constantly changing things up, trying new methods, finding new ways to work her space. The method we recommend is the one that works best for you. For me, I process mail as soon as it enters the house, a filing system would lead me to collecting clutter. Think about how you like to keep your space, how you already process mail and then you may end up taking a piece from this system and a bit from that method and forming a new way that works best for you.
Hi there, I’m new to the site and I just had to say this bill center is absolutely darling and I’m totally going to make one of my own. Your work space is making me excited to pay bills haha
I LOVE the Ideas will definitely be using! It’s mine and my husbands First Brand new home ever and want to stay completely organized! thank you!
Just wondering, what size cork board did you use to get the chart and everything included on there?
When it comes to the budget I always make sure to be organized because it’s all about money and my income and investments. I really love some of these ideas, especially the use of the color coding. I use the color codes in my planner also and I wouldn’t trade it for the world because that’s what helps me to stay organized. One color for business, other for household issues and so on. I really love the bill center also! It’s great to see what’s already paid and what’s waiting for me.
Thank you for the inspiration! The last picture in particular was extremely helpful in understanding how paperwork flows in and out of your house. Do you have any suggestions for a shredding machine? We have been through about 3 and they get jammed so badly we end up throwing them away. I’m pretty gentle with my items, so it’s a bit frustrating to not have one that lasts more than a few months. Thank you!
Sarah @ http://www.marriageisnotforwimps.blogspot.com
Can you tell me what size the bulletin board is please?
Not sure… but I think its about 3 foot tall. Its the large size.
Thank you! I’m so so excited with how much more organized I am thanks to this amazing site!
Hi Toni,
First of all, just wanted to say that I love your “A Bowlful of Lemons” website. It’s so cute & colorful & just makes me feel happy.
Anyway, what kind of label maker & tape did you use for the hanging transparent compartments?
Aloha,
Lynn
Toni has a couple of label makers. One of her favorites is the Brother P-Touch.
I set up an exact copy of this except for the colors. I love that apple postit holder and havent seen one in stores. I found a red one online and red and white gingham tape from the Platypus company to customize everything. I would have never thought of using tape like that.