Final Affairs for Two, Hardcover

Two lives, one book, nothing left to guess.

Most couples keep half the answers each. One of you knows the bank, the other knows the insurance, and neither of you has ever written any of it down. If something happens to one of you, the other spends weeks reconstructing it. If something happens to both, your children start from nothing.

Separate pages for each of you, shared pages for what you own together

The personal sections run twice, once for each of you, with your name printed at the top of every page so there is never any doubt whose entry is whose. The shared sections have a column to mark whose it is: partner one, partner two, or both.

Twelve printed tabs, findable with the book closed

Each of the twelve sections has a tab printed on the edge of the page, at a different height. Close the book and you can see all twelve. Open it straight to the one you need. Nothing to assemble, no stickers, no dividers to buy.

Written for the United States

Social Security and Medicare. Medicaid. 401(k) and IRA beneficiaries. VA benefits and the DD-214 that unlocks them. The state DMV for vehicle titles. The three credit bureaus. If you have tried one of the popular end-of-life planners and found it asking for a National Insurance number, this is the one written for your paperwork.

What is inside

• Start Here. Where this book is kept, and who knows about it.
• About Me. Twice. Identity, family, military service, work history.
• People to Contact. Who to call first, the professionals, and everyone else.
• Documents and Where They Are. Not the documents. The map to them.
• Money and Accounts. Banks, retirement, pensions, investments, debts.
• Insurance and Benefits. Life, health, long-term care, property, VA.
• Property and Vehicles. Deeds, titles, and who should have what.
• Bills and Subscriptions. What must keep being paid, and what to cancel.
• Digital Accounts. Email first, then everything else.
• Health and Care Wishes. Twice. Who speaks for you, and where your directives are.
• My Funeral or Memorial. Twice. Service, pallbearers, music, readings, flowers, obituary.
• For My Family. A checklist for the first days, and pages for whatever you want to say.

A deliberate omission

There is no place in this book to write a password. A notebook that lists a bank login beside an account number is a gift to anyone who finds it. What this book records is which accounts exist and where the password list or password manager can be found. That is what a family actually needs, and it is far safer.

The hardcover edition. A sturdy case-laminate cover built to last decades in a desk drawer or fireproof box. 8.25 by 11 inches, 140 pages, with lines spaced nearly half an inch apart so there is real room to write.

An organizer, not a legal document. It does not create or replace a will, a trust, or an advance directive. For those, see a licensed attorney in your state.