How long Should You keep Your Important Documents?

Hello and welcome to Houston First Time Home Buyers Edition, formally First Home Houston (FHH), where we provide useful information to help Houston first time home buyers make the most informed decision when it comes to buying, decorating, and maintaining their first home.

As a first time home buyer, you now have a lot more documents that you will need to maintain. What should you keep and what should you throw away, may be questions you will ask yourself at some point. To help you answer those questions, here is a quick guide as to what you should keep and for how long.

You should keep paycheck stubs, utility bills, canceled checks, credit card receipts and bank statements for at least one year, unless needed for tax purposes.

Documents such as brokerage statements, income tax returns, receipts, cancelled checks and any other documents that support income and deductions on your tax return or 1099 should be kept for at least seven years.

Contracts, insurance related documents, pensions, retirement plans, stock records, property records, home improvement records, warranties and disputed bills should be kept for more than seven years. While life insurance policies, mortgage records and wills should be kept in a safe place always.

For big ticket items, such as expensive electronics, furniture and computers, you may want to hold on to the bill of sale for as long as you have the item. Why? because in the event of a loss, you will be able to substantiate your insurance claim.

As always, thank you so much for stopping by. Remember, if you are thinking of purchasing your first home, please contact us. We are here to help. We have been helping Houston first time home buyers since 2011 and we can help you. I hope you have an amazing day. Until next time...Diana