I currently get 5 separate monthly statements for 5 different accounts (my standard acct, 2 roths, 2 kids accounts) with my broker (and that number may increase to 6 soon). Each statement is at least 4 separate pages each. So I get 20 pages, plus the paper for the envelope, and any additional add pamphlets that might be included inside the envelope.

I’ve been getting mailed statements ever since I was in high school.  I have a complete history of my primary brokerage account statements printed out. I know if I were to get them in electronic format, most likely, I’d print them out at home and put them in their respective notebooks.

So, if I were to go the paperless route as my broker would like me to do, that would mean that I would have to incur the printing costs. I’m just not ready to go that route yet, I don’t see any direct benefit in it for me.

 

This makes me feel slightly guilty on 2 levels.

• I shouldn’t be receiving the printout of the documents, but I feel nice and secure knowing that I have a hard copy…  I don’ t know why I feel I need this, but I do.
• I’m contributing (in a very small way) to the destruction of trees needlessly.  I don’t like knowing this…

 

So I came up with this compromising solution:

• Change all of my brokerage account setup so that I only receive electronic statements.
• Have the e-statements setup go a new email account that I’ll setup to receive just brokerage statements
• Within the email accounts setup a special folder called Acct_Statements, just to prevent accidental deletions from occurring in the my inbox.
• Only print the summarization page of my estatment and put it in my account notebook.

Doing the steps outlined above will still cost me some money, but not much.  Plus, I get the privilege of feeling like I make a difference since I’m not using as much paper, thus lessening the need to cut down more trees (in a very very very small way of course…)

So my question is, do you still get statement printouts mailed to you?  Or do you have a better solution?

I think I will finish this year still receiving my account statements this way, but in 2011, I may go with the method I described above.  Unless someone can provide a better solution…

-D