Spring cleaning isn't just for closets — it's the perfect time to organize your family's documents and go paperless with a secure digital vault.

Physical files pile up fast, and digital ones often get buried in cluttered email threads or cloud folders — making important information hard to find when you need it.

Using a digital vault like Trustworthy's Family Operating System® can save time, reduce stress, and keep everything secure, accessible, and up to date. This article will show you how to simplify your document organization with Trustworthy this spring.

Key Takeaways 

• Spring cleaning your family’s documents helps ensure they’re secure, up to date, and easy to access — giving you peace of mind.

• Gather and assess all documents in one location. This is the time to decide what to keep and what to securely discard.

• Going digital means centralized storage, clear organization, reduced clutter, and safer sharing. 

Step 1: Gather and Assess Your Important Documents  

Start by gathering all your family’s documents in one place and sorting through what’s essential. Documents to gather include:

• Legal documents: This includes birth certificates, marriage certificates, Social Security numbers, and power of attorney documents.

• Medical information: Medical history records, vaccination records, doctors and medical specialists’ information, and health insurance cards.

• Financial records: Bank statements, loan agreements, current debts, tax returns, bank account information, investment records, and all income sources.

• Insurance policies: This includes all health, auto, home, and life insurance policies.

• Household information: Utility bills, mortgage documents, rental agreements, and other monthly expenses related to running a household.

• Estate planning: This will include end-of-life planning documents like wills, trusts, advance directives, trust agreements, and other medical orders like POLST forms and do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders.

Take this time to note missing or outdated documents and request replacement copies. You should also evaluate whether digital copies exist and whether they are stored safely.

Next, decide what to keep and what you can securely discard. Here’s how to decide what to toss:

Documents to Toss After a Year

• Statements for your cell phone, cable, internet, and other streaming services unless you’re using these statements as business expenses.

• Brokerage statements.

• Credit card and utility bills.

• Statements from other financial organizations.

Documents to Toss After 7 Years

• 401(k) and other retirement plan year-end statements.

• IRA contributions.

• Records of sold real estate, investments, and charitable donations.

• Correspondence with the IRS.

• Past tax returns and relevant documents.

Documents You Should Keep Forever

• Birth certificates.

• Citizenship documents.

• Adoption papers.

• Marriage certificates.

• Divorce or annulment papers.

• Custody agreements.

• Deeds.

• Powers of attorney.

• Wills, living trusts, and living wills.

• Financial aid documents.

• List of important contact information for lawyers, relatives, financial advisors, and doctors.

If you own an asset, you will need to keep all corresponding documents related to that asset, including:

• Warranties.

• Insurance policies.

• Titles.

• Receipts for important purchases and other investments made to your home.

Step 2: Digitize & Organize

Paul Koenigsberg of Koenigsberg & Associates, a New York law firm, advises:

“Keeping only paper copies of important documents puts them at risk of loss, damage, or inaccessibility during emergencies. Some legal documents, like property deeds, birth certificates, or wills, are hard to replace and a hassle to retrieve if lost.

"Without them, you may face complications making claims, proving ownership, or accessing emergency services. Digitizing your documents is a smart way to back them up.”

For long-term storage, storing your family’s documents digitally is the best option, and Trustworthy is the superior choice. Trustworthy’s Family Operating System® is designed with families in mind — keeping important documents secure, organized, and accessible whenever they’re needed. 

Thanks to the iOS/Android mobile app with a built-in scanner, Trustworthy makes storing your documents online easy. You can scan and upload your documents on the go without juggling multiple tools or apps. The Chrome extension offers a drag-and-drop function that makes it simple to add files, save email attachments, and capture screenshots directly to your Trustworthy inbox.. 

The Benefits of Going Digital 

Choosing to go digital not only provides peace of mind but also comes with other benefits like: 

Centralized Storage 

Keeping your important documents in one secure place makes them both safe and easy to access. Trustworthy provides a secure, centralized system for families to manage their files.

Clear Naming and Categorization 

Quick, easy access is essential for managing family documents. Trustworthy’s Autopilot tool suggests file names and categories and organizes files for you — no need to start from scratch. Autopilot analyzes and extracts key information from documents and puts it in an easy-to-retrieve format.

Easy and Secure Sharing 

Using digital over paper makes sharing your documents with family members and trusted advisors much more secure, thanks to advanced security measures often used on digital platforms. Sharing documents digitally also eliminates the risk of documents being lost during transport.

Reduced Clutter and Increased Security

Paper piles up fast, making organization overwhelming and potentially risky. Digital storage clears the clutter and keeps your documents secure.

Trustworthy uses bank-level security, including AES 256-bit encryption, multi-factor and biometric authentication, physical security keys, threat detection, and tokenization — which replaces sensitive data with unique tokens stored separately from your account.

Step 3: Securely Share & Set Permissions

One of the most significant benefits of using digital storage for your family’s documents is controlling who needs access. Trustworthy offers families safe document-sharing options in three ways:

Granular Access Levels

Choose who has access to what by creating your trusted network of unlimited collaborators on Trustworthy. This can include family members and trusted advisors. Choose between full and partial access, which limits what folders and files can be accessed.

SecureLinks™

This standout feature allows Trustworthy users to share their documents with people outside of their trusted network of collaborators securely. It creates unique, view-only access links to specific files. Users can set how long the link is valid, giving them ultimate control over their information.

Legacy Access

It is crucial to ensure your family has access to vital documents when they need them if you’re no longer around. Legacy Access lets you designate someone to access your account after your death.

Step 4: Automate Reminders and Stay Up to Date

Part of spring cleaning your digital documents is ensuring everything is up to date and accurate. Prevent expiration issues — like lapsed passports, insurance policies, or driver’s licenses — by using Trustworthy’s automated reminders.

Use Trustworthy’s automated reminders to stay on top of renewals, deadlines, and important updates — like changes to beneficiaries or estate plans — while keeping your family informed.

Review your documents regularly, especially after major life events like birth, marriage, divorce, or death. Set reminders to check your documents at least twice a year.

Step 5: Give Your Family Peace of Mind

Organized documents aren’t just convenient — they’re essential for planning and protecting your family. For example, during medical emergencies, having critical information readily available can avoid delays in treatment.

Make Spring Cleaning an Annual Habit 

Spring cleaning your documents can feel overwhelming if you wait until they’re a mess. Make it a yearly habit. Here’s how:

• Review your documents every year to ensure they are accurate and up to date.

• Ensure your digital storage is secure and backed up. If you’re uncertain whether your password is still secure, we recommend updating it with a new, strong password.

• Update documents that are outdated and securely discard unnecessary documents.

• Communicate any important updates and changes with your family members.

• Trustworthy makes it easy to turn document spring cleaning into a yearly habit.

Start Your Digital Spring Cleaning Today

Don’t wait until the last minute to organize your family documents. Trustworthy makes it easy by providing a secure, streamlined way to keep everything up to date and accessible — giving you peace of mind.

Start your digital spring cleaning for free with Trustworthy — and stay organized all year long.

Frequently Asked Questions 

How do I know which documents should be stored digitally?

While digital storage is more secure and convenient, some documents — like birth certificates, property deeds, and Social Security cards — must be kept in their original form for legal purposes. You can keep digital copies of these, but for official use, you’ll often need the physical originals.

How should I dispose of sensitive documents I no longer need?

Declutter and organize your documents by disposing of sensitive documents with a shredder. If you don’t own one or have a large volume of documents that need to be shredded, some companies offer secure shredding services.

What are some common mistakes people make when organizing documents?

Some common mistakes to avoid include keeping your family’s documents in multiple locations, using weak or compromised passwords, not regularly backing up digital copies, and not updating information after major life events.