how long to keep bank statements?

[vishenda]

hey there...I am having a massive declutter...(anything rather than filling in my tax form,clearing out under my bed is next!).How long should I keep my statements? I have got some from 2001 onwards?.Thanks

[boefixepa]

You really don't need them as most people can easily download old statements. Unless needed for taxes, I shread mine every year. So I only keep a year in hand at any one time. I can't think of one time I've needed them in all the years I've had a checking account....13 years...can you?

[safari]

Bank statements are just a waste of paper. I can always get my balance information online. I can't think of a single case when I ever needed an old bank statement. It's irrelevant what my balance was a few months ago or last year. The latest bank statement is usually required when applying for a mortgage, but that's about it.

[nanamom]

i've had an account for 33 years and never needed more than the last two. That was only when I applied for a mortgage. Most banks will make another paper copy for a fee although I really can't think of when you might need that. I shred (or did when my shredder worked) the last one when a new one come in.

[PRICEPLUS]

I keep them for a year.

[jlvkfyang]

I usually make sure i have at least 12 months of statements. Just for peace of mind.

[poundwise]

I save mine for longer; about five to seven years. I mainly do this in the event of an audit. I'd like to have all my info on hand, especially the image statements of canceled checks and deposit and transfer records. It is probably not altogether necessary to save it all but I'd rather be over-prepared than under. Especially since the IRS can pull bank records and demand an accounting of all deposits and transfers into an account. If you can't account for it, they could deem it as income, whether it was a gift, a redeposit of cash previously withdrawn, etc. (This may be something that is especially true for self-employed persons and not so much with others.)

Also, two notes relating to comments above:

1) You typically cannot download more than certain range in the past of online information/statements; often 12 months.

2) To "declutter," whether you save statements for 12 months, 2 years, or longer, you could save electronic versions instead of paper. You could do this by savings the e-versions your bank provides or by scanning in your paper versions before destroying them. This would make it easy to save statements for any period of time without having them take up room or add to clutter.

[threebeansalad]

I stopped having mine delivered and only have online statements. I'm not saying this was the best decision, but it's what I do.

I'm a FT student receiving a monthly stipend, so my taxes are easy and my income is rather low.

[PrincessPerky]

I went with online too, it is nice not to have one more thing on my 'desk' and as for the old ones, I have never needed them, and even if I had them, I wouldn't know where they were, or what to do with them in case of an audit!

Also with a low income, no home buisness, life is boring and simple.

[kobe008]

I dont keep any statements but then I work at a bank I do know if you need old statements it is a small fee charged, but I dont know of any reasons besides audit or if you were scammed somehow that you would need them.

[Hot dog]

I had to pay for one once because I went to a saminar and needed proof of payment for my job and my bank does not send me the old checks back so I had to do that to be refunded for work

[JanH]

We keep them for a year. I like having the paper ones because I have tangible proof if needed in case our banks get clobbered again by a hurricane. It's great that my credit union has the records still, but it was a shock to go to the brick and mortar building and seeing only the two stories of girders and the vault area left from the demolition to rebuild it. They were operating out of trailers, but it was a sobering thought. So I decided to continue with paper statements just in case. Call me old-fashioned.....

[vsjhoc]

If you kept your long-distance phone bills from 2003-2006, you might be able to claim more than the standard amount of the Telephone Excise Tax Refund this year ... so there's a good reason to keep every bill from every utility from now until eternity ... just in case ...

[cicy33]

Many years ago I ran into a problem with the light company saying we owed them money we did not feel that we did but because we did not keep records could not prove it. That was long before the internet access. Now I keep everything forever. I pack it in boxes. Also we have a business so I also save in the event of an audit.

[Gruntina]

I am no longer saving mine as I can retrieve online statement. I no longer receive paper statement of my pay stub from my employer as it's also online statement. They do this to save the companies money and use 3rd party vendors.

I also like mininal paper storage at my house.

[magnate]

Rule of thumb is 7 years. However, nowadays you can get electronic ones instead of paper which are much easier to store and keep track of.

[bjl584]

All of them. Every single one. Every pay stub from every paycheck that I have ever received in my life as well. I don't know why. They're all stored in boxes.

[Snoopy2645]

I have bank statements from years ago records in case of divorce!!! Hopefully that wont happen but I am trying to protect my girls & me if it shall of course he says he wouldnt take anything if we split I tend to think it will be a different story shall it ever happen LOL!!

[poundwise]

General Records Retention Guideline

Audit Reports: Forever
Bank Deposit Slips: 6 Years
Bank Statements: 6 Years
Canceled Checks: 3 Years
Current Contracts and Leases: Life of Contract, plus 3 Years
Housing Records: As long as you own the home, plus 3 Years.
(Includes home improvements, additions, expenses involved in selling/buying home)
Insurance Records: Forever
Investment Records: 6 Years after sale of investment.
Discard monthly statements once you receive annual summary that reflects yearly activity.
IRA Contributions: Forever
Legal Correspondence: (Marriage Certificates, Death Certificates, Divorce Papers, etc.): Forever
Real Estate Records: Forever
Receipts for Appliances, Computer Equipment, etc: Life of Asset, plus 3 Years
Tax Returns and Supporting Documentation: Forever
Warranties/Guaranties: Life of the Product

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