Where's That Paper?

"If I'd known I was going to live this long, I'd have taken better care of things." Have you heard this before? Often expressed by people in their later years, this lamentation usually relates to the past, but in reality, it's never too late to put our affairs in order.

We're talking finances, health documents, wills, insurance papers and many others. There are papers entering our life daily, many that must be kept for a life-time.

Google lists more than 95,000 "how-to" books and articles offering advice to at least 95,000 people who can't locate a birth certificate, a death certificate, or warranty papers for the washer that conked out.

Knowing which papers to keep is the key to "taking care of business."

Your safe-deposit box is perfect for the following documents:

- birth and marriage certificates

- passports

- stock and bond certificates

- deeds and other records of ownership

- citizenship, adoption, and custody papers

- home inventory and appraisals

- photos of valuables and receipts

- insurance policies with agent names

How long should you keep the following?

- bank statements, 3 full years

- birth certificates, forever

- cancelled checks, 1 full year/with bank statements

- contracts, until updated

- credit card records, 6 years

- divorce papers, forever

- home purchase, as long as you own property

- household inventories, until updated

- life insurance policy, until death

- car, home, other insurance policies, until updated

- investment records, 6 years after tax deadline for year of sale

- investment certificates, until cashed or sold

- loan agreements, 3 years after final payment (yours and those you've cosigned for)

Reminders, records stored in only one name in a safety deposit box will be sealed upon the death of that person, delaying any asset transfers or transactions. Make sure someone else knows, and understands your record-keeping secrets, especially the safe-deposit key and account numbers.

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