Spring Cleaning and Your Finances
Spring cleaning and decluttering is an annual ritual that some 80 percent of Americans undertake each year – and we’d rather do that than our taxes, the same study says. But there’s no one-size-fits-all formula on what financial documents to keep and what to toss.
The rule of thumb from many accountants and financial advisors is to keep most records for seven years – but there are some documents you should probably never get rid of.
Rodney Brooks
An award-winning journalist, writer and author and my specialty is retirement planning and other personal finance issues. I have written for many national publications, including USA TODAY, The Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report, AARP and National Geographic. I am available to speak on personal finance, financial literacy and the racial wealth gap.
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The author tells the history of the Freedman’s Savings Bank, how it grew much too quickly, why it failed and the impact on Black America. The Freedman’s Bank offered a safe depository for formerly enslaved people, expanded quickly and gained millions in deposits – mostly ranging from $5 to $50. But inexperience and corruption doomed it to failure, costing may of the small depositors their savings.
