Conquer Your Wallet in 30 minutes!

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Today I decided to pare down the number of cards I carry in my wallet.  It started because I had some gift cards that were nearing their expiration dates and I wanted to make sure I used them up or got replacements for the ones already expired.  If you take a look at the picture below, I'll think you'll see why I thought this was a worthwhile endeavor:

Some of the cards in my wallet...

Does this look familiar?  Well then.  Let's do something about it!

1. Remove every card from every nook and cranny of your wallet, purse, glove box - anywhere they might be hiding.  Count them up for the dramatic "before" number.  How many cards did I have?  42.  FORTY-TWO!!!!  That's like 10 pounds of plastic!
2. Sort the cards into categories:
• necessary (insurance cards, ID, debit/credit cards, etc.)
• valid and expired store/restaurant gift cards
• loyalty cards
• sentimental
3. Check balances on the all of the gift cards (even the expired ones).  You can usually do this painlessly through automated systems online, by text, or by phone.  Write the remaining balance on the face on the card (update this at the checkout the next time you use it).  Order replacements for cards that have expired but still have balances.  Note: sometimes there is a replacement charge to get a new card.  One of my cards had a $25 balance but I had to pay $15 to replace it so I'll only end up with $10.  It's still something, but it drives me crazy that I didn't just use these cards right away!  Throw out the cards that have been used up or are no longer valid.
4. Organize the remaining cards in a way that makes sense in your wallet.  My wallet has four card "pages" and I keep all the required cards together on two pages and put the remaining on the other two pages.  I will put multiple cards in one slot if they are for the same store.  If you can bring yourself to do it, throw out the sentimental cards or store them with other sentimental trinkets.
5. Celebrate!  Chances are good you found a gift card you didn't know you had.  Plan to put those gift cards to use.  I see Coldstone Creamery in my future... :)

Tips:

• Some gift cards lose value each month after a certain time period so, even if you had a balance of $25 on a VISA gift card two years ago, it may have dwindled to $2.17 (true story).
• If you have multiple cards for the same store, use the cards with the smallest balances first so you can pitch them.  Also see if you can combine the balances of the remaining cards to a single card.
• If you use a digital shopping list, add a reminder in the form of an "item" to each store for which you have a gift card.  My Target shopping list now says "Anne has a gift card $25" so I'll remember to pull it out when I go shopping.
• Keep the gift cards near your credit card or cash so when you go to pay it'll jog your memory.

At the end of the day, I was moderately successful.  I still have 22 cards in my wallet, but I'd say they're all required or useful and I came across a few gems in the process (that were removed from my wallet!).

Required:

• Drivers' License (1)
• Credit/Debit Card (1)
• Insurance cards (4 - required to carry.  Grr...)

Useful:

• Store/restaurant gift cards (12 - still enjoying wedding gifts!)
• Loyalty cards (5*)

Gems:

• Student ID from the community college I attended in high school
• video rental card for the grocery store near my parents' house that no longer offers this service
• Debit card for an account I shut down a year ago and never even used while I had the account because I couldn't remember the pin...
• Borders gift card and membership card (when did that store shut down?)

*Stay tuned for an upcoming post on going digital with reward/loyalty cards!
I came across a few gems:

It kills me to know that I wasted and lost value on gift cards and rebate cards simply because I lost track of them!  Gah!  I figure I lost about $70 in value from service fees, stores gone bankrupt, and replacement card charges.  My number one takeaway from this exercise is to USE GIFT CARDS IMMEDIATELY.  I always want to save them for something "special" instead of the ordinary purchases, but let me tell ya a stuffed wallet and regret ain't special!  Use them for the boring purchases and add the value of the card to a virtual "fun money" fund in your budget where it'll never expire.  It also makes me wonder if gift cards are really such a great gift.  Lately, when I am totally at a loss for something personal, I've been getting Amazon.com gift cards because the recipient can simply enter the code into their Amazon account and the next time they order, Amazon will automatically apply it to their next order.

How'd you do?  Come across anything particularly noteworthy?  Find any long-lost cards with that still had value?