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Troy Segal is a senior editor for Bankrate. She edits stories about mortgages and home equity, along with the finer financial points of owning and maintaining a home.
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Getting a mortgage involves a lot of paperwork, from the stack of documents you’ll get at closing to the statements your lender will send each month. You might be wondering how long to keep these statements and other mortgage papers, and if you need to keep every single one — especially in our digital age. Here’s what to know about how long to keep mortgage statements and other home-related documents.
Whether you get them by mail, email, or uploaded to an onsite account, mortgage statements have a short shelf life — a new one comes once a month, after all — so you can destroy or shred them whenever you choose.
“Since the information contained on monthly statements is always changing, there’s no need to keep them for any prolonged period of time if you don’t want to,” says Than Merrill, CEO of FortuneBuilders, a real estate investor coaching firm. Those documents can go fairly soon — or even immediately if you can access them online. At most, you might keep one on hand in case you need to provide proof of your mortgage details or home address.
There are other mortgage documents you can let go of fairly soon. “The agent’s agreement and addendum documents can be discarded after as little as three years, since the statute of limitations for IRS auditing is up to that time,” says real estate investor Warner Quiroga, president and owner of Prestige Home Buyers in Long Island, New York. While Quiroga recommends tossing the home inspection report, too, other authorities recommend keeping it so you have proof of the home’s condition when you purchased it.
But many experts advise holding onto certain mortgage documents, such as the mortgage note, for the life of your loan or beyond, or at least until you sell your home.
Even if you pay off your mortgage, it is a smart idea to keep the paperwork. Once you sell and there are no future tax implications associated with the sale of that property, your paperwork may be discarded. — Roselina D’Annucci, a New York-based attorney with Serrano and Associates PC
Your mortgage statements may include details such as:
Mortgage statements follow you throughout the life of your home loan. But before they start, there are plenty of other documents accompany a home purchase. Here they are, in rough order of when you’ll encounter them.
“This piece of paper is a contract between you and your real estate agent,” says Quiroga. “It usually explains how the agent will work for you and how they will be paid.”
A seller disclosure document spells out any issues with the home that the seller is aware of. “It tells you about the condition of the house and any known problems that might influence its value or safety,” such as structural defects or hazards like asbestos or lead paint, says Quiroga.
A home inspection report is a detailed write-up from a professional home inspector that describes indicating your home’s condition, including possible hazards or problems.
The title insurance document from the settlement or title company includes information about your title insurance policy, which protects the lender (and you, if you opt for this coverage) from issues with the property’s ownership.
The promissory note ( or mortgage note) is the legal contract you sign with your lender, in which you promise to repay the debt you took on with interest and agree the home is collateral for the debt. “Some states use a document called a deed of trust for this,” says Quiroga.
The closing disclosure, which you receive at least three days before your closing, “summarizes the final details of your mortgage loan and the property sale,” says Quiroga. “It tells you things like the amount, length and type of your loan, the interest rate, the overall costs and the escrow fees.”
The purchase agreement or contract, signed by both you and seller at the closing, typically includes the price paid for the home, closing date and other essential details. It may also include addendum and amendments, documents that specify any changes or details not present in the original purchase and sale agreement (the contract you signed when your home offer was accepted).
The deed indicates your ownership of the home and is signed by you and the seller at the closing. “The main job of a deed is to move the legal rights of a property from one person or business to another,” says Quiroga.
While you can get rid of your monthly mortgage statements, there are some other documents that you should keep as long as you own the home. These include:
Keep in mind: You might wonder, “What documents do I need to keep after paying off the mortgage?” Generally, it’s a good idea to keep everything cited here until you part with the property, even if it pertains to a loan you’ve fully settled.
Now that we’ve given you an overview of how long to keep mortgage documents, here are some reasons why it’s important to keep them:
Other reasons you might need your mortgage statements include determining your capital gains tax liability, preparing for a major remodeling project and having documentation in case you get audited.
The lesson here? “Keep everything,” says D’Annucci. “You never know what challenges you may face in the future that your carefully preserved paperwork can help resolve.”
Ideally, you should store original paper mortgage documents within a fireproof and waterproof safe in your home or in a safe deposit box at your bank. At the very least, store paper documents in a filing cabinet that you can lock. “Try to organize your papers in a binder or folder,” says Ang. “Chronological order may be most helpful, with indicator tabs showing the month and year.”
It’s also smart to keep a digital copy of your mortgage documents in cloud-based storage or on a hard drive. “Just be aware that a hard drive can be lost, and cloud-based storage can be hacked,” says Quiroga. “Plus, digital copies can be altered. That’s why holding onto the original paperwork is wise.”
If you decide to discard any of these documents, don’t simply toss them in the trash. “All sensitive content should first be removed before discarding, including your account numbers, Social Security number and date of birth that can be redacted by using a redaction pen or stamp,” says D’Annucci.
After that, you can either thoroughly shred or completely burn the paperwork.
Lastly, if you’ve lost or damaged any original mortgage documents, don’t despair. You may have options to retrieve them or get replacements, says Gabriel Freitas, broker/owner at Voyant Realty in Andover, Mass.
However, he advises homeowners to keep a close eye on the “original note from a closing package, as well as any discharges when mortgages are refinanced or paid off.”
“Other documents can be obtained if you lose them, but those two are the ones you might need most, so having them handy is a good idea,” he says.
Many companies that participate in real estate transactions — like lenders and title companies — keep this type of paperwork on file. If, for some reason, you need a physical copy of a particular document, the company that was involved in that part of the deal, or your local recorder’s office, may be able to send you a replacement.
While there’s no requirement for how long to keep mortgage statements after a loved one dies, it’s a good idea to keep them for at least three years. You can store them in a secure spot, such as in a fireproof safe or safety deposit box. For added security, consider making digital copies.
Keep your mortgage documents and related home sale records for at least seven years after selling your home. This includes proof of mortgage payoff, the closing statement and receipts for capital improvements.
It’s a good idea to hold onto refinance paperwork for a minimum of three years and up to 10 years for reference in case of statement errors or unexpected changes in your interest rate or payments.
Troy Segal is a senior editor for Bankrate. She edits stories about mortgages and home equity, along with the finer financial points of owning and maintaining a home.
