Cleaning out your family home is never easy. Not only is it a daunting task it can be very emotional as well, especially if you are grieving the loss of a loved one. Just trying to figure out where to start can be overwhelming, so we’ve put together a few tips that we hope will help.

Estate Cleanout Tips

Here are a few tips that can make an estate clean out a little bit easier. 

Make a Plan

Estate cleanouts can be a lot of work, both physically and emotionally. A good first step to an estate cleanout is to make a plan. This can keep the process from becoming overwhelming and ensure everyone involved is on the same page. Before diving into the cleaning, sorting and decluttering:

• Walk through the home to assess the scope of the cleanout
• Make a list of tasks and prioritize them 
• Decide on a system for sorting and distributing items
• Set a timeframe with realistic goals especially if the home is full of sentimental belongings 
• Consult with your estate attorney to ensure all legal obligations are met

Locate Paperwork & Legal Items

Before removing anything from the home, make sure you have all important documents safely tucked away. This includes any paper or digital assets relating to legal, financial or personal accounts such as:  

• Wills and estate documents
• Tax records, pay stubs and bank statements
• Insurance policies
• Bills for utilities and subscriptions
• Property titles and mortgage payments
• Vehicle registrations and titles
• Birth certificates, IDs, passports
• Medical records
• Passwords and usernames for email, social media, cloud storage and other online accounts

Organized & Distribute Belongings

One of the hardest and most emotional aspects of an estate cleanout can be deciding what to do with your loved one’s belongings. It can alleviate a lot of stress and tension if you have a plan or system in place for distributing their belongings that’s been clearly communicated and agreed upon before you start. Some tips to consider include:

• Start with immediate family and work outward to other close family members and friends
• Have everyone clearly mark or tag items they would like before anything gets distributed
• Create a record of where valuable or sentimental items are going
• Hire a mediator or estate sale professional to oversee the process

Take It One Room at a Time

Emptying out an entire house of belongings and memories can be overwhelming. Going room by room can help break the daunting task up into some much more manageable. When going through each room, sorting items into traditional decluttering categories: keep, donate, sell and throw can be helpful, but whatever decluttering method you choose try to:

• Break the work up into smaller tasks to stay motivated
• Start with less sentimental spaces before moving on to tougher spaces like bedrooms and personal spaces 
• Keep boxes and bins nearby for easy sorting
• If a lot of items are broken, outdated or unwanted items, consider renting a dumpster as a simple and convenient way to dispose of items

Sell or Donate

Selling or donating items no one in your family has a need for can be a great option. While it does require more work, it can give better closure knowing your loved one’s items are getting a second life. Here are some ways you can sell or donate items:

• Host an estate sale or a cleanout sale to get rid of items quickly with less hassle
• Invite neighbors, friends of the family or extended family members to see if they want anything for sentimental reasons 
• Larger, valuable or collectable items can be sold on online platforms like Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist 
• Contact local charities to see if they are in need of any household item donations

Hire Help if Needed

Estate cleanouts can be time consuming, physically challenging and emotionally draining. They often involve heavy furniture, stuffed storage spaces, decades of memories and tight deadlines. There’s no shame in hiring a professional estate cleanout service if the task is more than you can handle alone. Services like Couple More Guys® can handle things like:

• Lifting, sorting, organizing and moving belongings
• Helping setup for or teardown after an estate sale
• Clearing out unwanted items and clutter 
• Moving furniture, appliances, mattresses and boxes 
• Donation and recycling drop-offs 
• Junk hauling
• Cleaning once belongings have been removed

Lighten Your Load with a Couple More Guys®

Estate cleanouts are never easy, but a Couple More Guys® can make the load a little lighter. Our insured, two-person crews can take on the heavy lifting, time-consuming sorting and organizing, treating your family home and your loved one’s belongings with all the care and attention to detail they deserve. We can even move items or haul away ones that you are ready to let go of. Schedule a crew online and give yourself the time to focus on what truly matters and not the mess.