By Barbara Ricketts a.k.a. “The Mess Doctor”
Certified Professional Organizer®

With the cost of just about everything (gas, food, etc.) going up daily, we are all looking for ways to save and/or more efficiently use our money. One expense that you might not have thought about is the “Cost of Disorganization”. If you have a lot of clutter and disorganization in your home, office and your life, then you are wasting money in some form.

Here are a few examples of the cost of a disorganized home, office and/or life:

“Late Fee Charges” because your bills aren’t organized and easy to pay on time.
– Have a system for bill paying.
– Make a date in your calendar: Pay bills twice a month
– For Paper bills, Keep a single file folder along with your stamps, return address labels and envelopes.

Impulse shopping without a list.
– Make a shopping list before you shop… Planning = Savings
– Purchase only what you need.
– Stick to the list.
– Don’t shop while hungry!

Avoid Duplicate Purchases.
– Gather all similar items together; inventory what you have!

Uncoordinated Errands
– Take time to plan your errand “Circuit”
– Minimize unnecessary travel
– Combine tasks to fall into one longer trip rather than several smaller ones.

Interest lost on checks before you deposit them (or you lose them all together).
– Use direct deposit or Schedule weekly (if not daily) paper check deposits.

Fees for “overnight expressing” late items.
– Don’t procrastinate!

Faulty or Inadequate Project Planning.
– What is the cost of your or your employee’s time… probably the biggest $ expense you have.
– Inefficiency = Money and Opportunity lost

Overtime pay for support staff staying late to do a “Rush” job because:
– It was given to them at the last moment, or
– It was not properly planned in the first place

The cost of replacing and retraining burned out employees who quit.

These are just a few examples of how disorganization can equal money wasted. At this time we all need to be as efficient as possible in all areas of our lives so we maximize our return for every dollar spent.

If you have questions for “The Mess Doctor” or if you need professional assistance to get organized contact Barbara Ricketts at MessDoctor@Mac.com or call 661-263-0124.

There were only 1,119 active listings (single family and condos combined) at month end, down 44% year over year. Based upon the current rate of sales, this inventory is equivalent to only a 4.1 month supply vs 8.2 months as of April 2008.

While the median price of SFH’s decreased 14.6% year over year it was actually up 2.5% over the previous month. Condominium median prices decreased 10.4% year over year but managed a whopping 25% increase over the previous month of March 2009. This figure may not be statistically meaningful as only 59 condos closed escrow in April 2009 and 58 in March 2009.

The low level of listings in the multiple listing service combined with record high affordability and availability of financing appears to be creating a bottoming of the market – pricewise. Sellers are slow to move as evidenced by the above-mentioned low supply of inventory which is bumping up prices month over month. It remains to be seen how an unlisted backlog of foreclosures and bank owned properties will affect the market as these inventories start getting released.

This report was compiled from data provided by the SoCal Multiple Listing Service and the Southland Regional Association of Realtors. The Santa Clarita Valley is comprised of the following localities; Castaic, Canyon Country, Newhall, Saugus Stevenson Ranch and Valencia.

Phil Levy, http://www.jpscvrealty.com/
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