When was the last time you purged your household files?

If your drawers are bulging at the seams, here are 10 types of documents you can purge from your file cabinets today and never look back.

1. Paid household utility bills more than one year old (Shred)
2. Old investment or brokerage statements – just keep the current month’s statement (Shred)
3. Medical receipts more than one year old (Shred)
4. Credit card statements from closed accounts (Shred)
5. ATM and store receipts for low value items more than 30 days old (Recycle)
6. Pay check stubs older than one year-old (Shred)
7. Business cards for people or companies you would never call or refer (Recycle)
8. Loan documents (those large, thick envelopes) when your loan has been sold or paid off (Shred)
9. Closed checking account statements and checks (Shred)
10. Greeting cards from people you don’t love, like or remember (Recycle)

TIP: Items marked as shred typically contain unique personal identifying information such as account numbers, medical record numbers or social security numbers. If you have more than a ream’s worth of documents, box them up and take them to a local shredding service. You can find one in your area by going to Iron Mountain‘s website or do a Google search for “paper shredding companies.”

Posted January 22, 2014 by Lis McKinley, M.A., CPO®