Short answer: after closing, keep the four documents the CFPB names: the Closing Disclosure, the promissory note, the mortgage or deed of trust, and the deed. Keep them at least as long as you own the home; the Closing Disclosure stays even longer, because it matters again when you sell. When you pay the loan off, add the payoff letter, the lien release and the original note your lender returns. No official rule says how long to keep those, and the common practice is to keep them for good, since your servicer has to keep its records for only one year after payoff.
For other kinds of documents, the master retention chart has the quick answer.
Mortgage and loan papers at a glance
| Document | Keep for | Why / source |
|---|---|---|
| Closing Disclosure | While you own the home, then until the tax review window closes for the year you sell | CFPB: needed at tax time and helpful when you sell |
| Promissory note | While the loan exists; the original returned at payoff, for good (practice) | CFPB: the lender should return the original note after payoff |
| Mortgage or deed of trust | While you own the home | CFPB: one of the four key documents |
| Deed | While you own the home, as a paper original | CFPB and FTC: keep while you own |
| Monthly and escrow statements | No official rule; practice is until the year-end statement checks out | Unless one backs up a tax deduction |
| Payoff letter and lien release | No official rule; practice is for good | Servicers must keep records only one year after payoff (CFPB) |
| Car and personal loan agreements | While you own what the loan paid for | FTC: documents related to vehicle loans, keep while you own |
This is what's generally true in the US, not legal or tax advice. Check the CFPB's pages, or ask a professional, if your situation is unusual.
The four closing documents the CFPB says to keep
The CFPB's advice after closing is to "save the whole stack or electronic file" and double-check that four documents are in it.
- Closing Disclosure. The summary of your loan terms and every closing cost. The CFPB says you'll need it "to complete your tax return accurately," since some closing costs may be deductible, and that it "may also be helpful for tax purposes when you sell your home." The tax side of that, including how long the IRS window runs after a sale, is covered in how long to keep home purchase and improvement records.
- Promissory note. Your promise to repay the loan.
- Mortgage or deed of trust. The security instrument that ties the loan to the house. Some loans use one name, some the other; either way, keep it.
- Deed. The document that transfers ownership to you. Keep the paper original somewhere safe; it's the one piece of this stack where the paper itself matters.
Note that the advice is to keep the whole stack, not only these four. As a scan, the rest of it costs nothing to keep.
Monthly and escrow statements
Monthly mortgage statements and the annual escrow statement have no official retention period. A common practice is to check each one for mistakes, keep the year-end statement, and shred the monthlies once it agrees. Keep any statement that backs up a deduction with that year's tax records.
When you pay the mortgage off
The last payment is the start of a short checklist, not the end of the paperwork.
- Get the original note back. The CFPB says that after payoff, "your lender should also return the original note to you."
- Watch for the lien release. "State property records will show whether your lien is released," and the CFPB warns there may be a delay between payoff and release. Check after a while, and keep a copy once it appears.
- Collect the escrow refund. If your servicer fails to refund money in your escrow account within 20 days of payoff, the CFPB says to send the servicer a written notice of error.
- Keep the payoff letter. It's the simplest proof of the date and amount that settled the loan.
Then keep all of it. The reason is in the CFPB's description of servicer rules: servicers "must keep records for at least one year after you pay off your loan, or after the loan is transferred to a new servicer." After that, your copy may be the only one. No official rule tells you how long to keep these papers, so "for good" is practice, not law, but they're a thin folder and the cheapest possible way to settle any future question.
A refinance works the same way: the old loan is paid off by the new one, so the old loan's payoff letter and lien release go in the folder too.
Car loans and personal loans
The FTC lists "documents related to mortgage or vehicle loans" among the papers to keep while you own the thing the loan paid for. For a paid-off car or personal loan, no official source says how long to keep the payoff letter. A common practice is to keep it at least as long as you own whatever the loan bought, and a scan of it indefinitely, for the same reason as a mortgage: it's your proof the debt is gone.
Where to keep loan papers
The manual way on iPhone. Open the Files app, tap the More button, tap Scan Documents, and hold each page in view of the camera; when you're done, choose a location and tap Save. Make one folder per loan and put the payoff letter and lien release in it the day they arrive. Keep the paper originals of the note and the deed in the same fire-resistant spot as your other originals; the guide to setting up an important documents organizer covers choosing that spot.
The less manual way. Paperlock reads each document as you save it, picks out who it's from, the dates and the amounts, and files it behind Face ID with no folders to set up. Years later, "when did we pay off the mortgage?" comes back with the payoff letter attached.
Keep the four closing documents while you own the home, add the payoff papers at the end, and don't count on anyone else keeping copies for you.