January 2023

As much as I have loved all of the holiday hustle and bustle, lights, decorations and busy schedules, I welcome January and the new year with open arms. When I think of January, a blank, white slate is what comes to mind. Nothing is yet final and there are so many possibilities for what lies ahead. I also look to January as a time to clean out and clean up to get ready for the New Year.

I have a few rituals and routines that I plan for each January. Some I do right away and some I do throughout the month….usually on cold weekend days that I don’t want to go outside.

The first thing I do is put away all the Christmas decorations and get the house back to normal. While I know some people like to wait until after January 6^th (the Feast of the epiphany for many Christians) or later, I need to get things done right away for my own peace of mind, and thus we usually do this on New Year’s Day. When we are all done, the house looks so empty but at the same time, the fresh look is oddly satisfying for me.

Later in January, as I start to gather together all of our tax information, I clean out my filing cabinet. Some things are for taxes and some things are items I have just tossed in there throughout the year, knowing that in January they get the big clean out. It used to take me a lot longer, but now that so much more stuff is online or digital, the paper pile is much smaller.

When it comes to Raymond James statements and documents, so often clients ask how long they should keep paper statements and other documents. Here is what we recommend:

First, know that we can retrieve past statements and documents going back 14 years. With that being said, if you are a client who prefers paper statements, we recommend keeping your year-end statement, file that with your tax documents when they are complete for that year, and then when you dispose of the tax documents in the seven-year IRS recommended period, you can dispose of your Raymond James papers too.

If you receive shareholder documents and prospectuses in the mail, once you are finished reading those, you don’t need to keep them. We can always have another copy sent to you and the mutual fund companies mail them to you once per year.

Now, if you don’t prefer to hang onto these paper items at all, consider signing up for our online Client Access feature. You can access your account online and on your phone via the mobile app. There, you can retrieve your electronic statements anytime and anywhere at your convenience. In addition, because our industry loves paper….you will probably save about five trees too!

If you haven’t signed up for online access, just email us at kindredfinancialpartners@raymondjames.com and Kasey or Jodi will get you all set up.

We look forward to what is to come this year. Wishing you a Happy New Year and best wishes for your fresh, clean slate!