How to De-Clutter Your Wallet

Leave these items out of your wallet to save yourself a major headache if your purse gets lost or stolen.

Keep Some Things at Home

This article originally appeared on LearnVest.com.

We love the motto “be prepared.”

But when it comes to the average American’s wallet, there’s such a thing as over-prepared. From the looks of our bulging billfolds, we must be heading out each day to open a new line of credit, fill out a W-2, shop at several department stores, use a few gift cards, return an item or two, and grab a fro-yo at our favorite punch card spot on the way home.

1,000 wallets and purses are stolen every two minutes in America. (44 percent of LearnVest readers have had their wallets lost or stolen once, while 8 percent have had theirs stolen twice or more). While it’s smart to be concerned with online security, 76 percent of identity thefts result from the theft of something physical, like a wallet. Additionally, it costs an average of $8,000 to recover from identity theft.

Most police who receive reports of stolen wallets lament the same thing: people carry way too much stuff in their wallets, handing their entire lives over to identity thieves.

So before you leave the house, read our list of what not to keep in your wallet, so you can pare down to just the essentials—and protect your finances and identity.