Spring may inspire you to turn out your cupboards and throw away those dusty old papers. But think before you bin as you could land yourself in trouble with the Revenue!

As a landlord you are required to maintain complete records of all expenses incurred, and the income received from your properties. This means not only hanging on to every relevant receipt, but also keeping details of any personal assets you used for the property business. For instance note down the details of all journeys you make concerning your property business, the time spent using your own computer, and the portion of your home used to process related paperwork.

If you use an nternet-only bank remember to print off your bank statements at least once a quarter, as these may contain the only record of rents you receive electronically. Deposits should be recorded separately, with the dates of when they were received and returned.

All the records relating to your property business must be kept for five years after the tax return filing date. So details for the year to 5 April 2005 should be retained until 31 January 2011. Sale and purchase contracts and receipts relating to property improvements should ideally be kept for six years after the end of the tax year in which the property is sold, just in case the Tax Inspector asks about the capital gain shown on your tax return.

Finally a word of warning: failure to retain tax-related paperwork can result in a fine of up to £3,000.