What Items You Should Keep and Those You Can Toss:

After One Year –

If these records were used as a deduction, then you should keep them for seven years.
  • Automobile records
  • Cable bills
  • Cell phone bills
  • Certificate of deposit (expired)
  • Credit Card receipts and statements
  • Professional dues
  • Receipts
  • Telephone bills
  • Utility bills

 

After Three Years –

  • Loans that have been paid off

 

After Seven Years –

  • Automobile records (for a donated vehicle)
  • Bank account statements (unless they include alimony payments received)
  • Brokerage statements (for stocks or mutual funds you’ve sold)
  • Canceled checks (for deducted items)
  • Capital improvement receipts (related to rental income from real estate)
  • Charitable contribution receipts
  • Child care payment receipts
  • Dependent care payments
  • Flexible-spending account information
  • Home office equipment, supplies (if deducting)
  • Insurance policy (for a home you’ve sold)
  • Interest expense (if deducting)
  • Invoices (for items and services you’re deducting)
  • IRS Form 1099
  • IRS Form 1099-G (gambling income)
  • IRS Form 1099-R (retirement income)
  • Lease agreements (related to rental income from real estate)
  • Mortgage interest payment receipts
  • Property records (related to property you’ve sold)
  • Sale documents (related to property you’ve sold)
  • Stock option agreements (which you’ve exercised)
  • Tax returns (except business returns)
  • Title (to property you’ve sold)

 

Keep Forever

  • Adoption papers
  • Appraisals (for items you’ve donated)
  • Bank account statements (that include alimony payments received)
  • Birth certificate
  • Brokerage statements (for stocks, bonds and mutual funds you own – if you sell these items keep the statements for seven years)
  • Closing statements (related to property used for rental income)
  • Deed(s)
  • Home improvement receipts
  • Home inventory
  • Lawsuits or other legal actions
  • Marriage certificate
  • Partnership agreements
  • Paycheck stubs (the last one you receive each year – if earnings on your Social Security statement are correct, you can toss the stub)
  • Pension plan documents
  • Power of attorney
  • Property-related paperwork on property you still own
  • Retirement plan contributions
  • S corporation documents
  • Stock certificates
  • Stock option agreements (keep until you’ve exercised them – then keep for seven years)
  • Tax returns (for a business)

For the official IRS guidelines, read Publication 552: Record keeping for Individuals

(Located on website – noted sources: Canby, Maloney & Company, Framingham, MA; Cleveland Financial Group, Cleveland, OH; Dennis & Dennis, Rancho Bernardo, CA; Financial Planning Association; Larry Foster, CPA/PFS and partner, Richard A. Eisner and Company, NY; IRS publications)