I recently met with some new clients who were referred to me by a past client.
They've lived in their home since the 1990s and are now planning to sell, move out of state and downsize into a smaller home.
Like many people who have lived in the same house for decades, they've accumulated a lot of belongings along the way.
Furniture. Tools. Clothes. Boxes in the garage. Things from when the kids were younger. Things they haven't used in years, but never really had a reason to get rid of.
Now they're faced with sorting through all of it while also preparing for a move to a smaller home.
It's a big job, but it's also completely manageable if you start early and take it one step at a time.
And if you're planning to sell, decluttering accomplishes two things at once. It makes your eventual move easier, while also helping prepare your home to look its best when buyers walk through the door.
Start One Room at a Time
You don't need to clean out the entire house in a weekend.
Start with one room, one closet or even one cabinet.
As you go through things, ask yourself a few simple questions:
- Do I still use this?
- Do I really want to move this?
- Will I have room for it in my next home?
If you're downsizing, that last question becomes especially important. Something may still be useful, but that doesn't necessarily mean it makes sense to take it to a smaller home.
From there, put everything into one of five categories:
Keep it. Pack it. Sell it. Donate it. Throw it away.
That's really the process.
Pack the Things You're Keeping but Don't Need Right Now
There are probably plenty of things you want to keep but won't need between now and moving day.
Seasonal decorations, extra dishes, books, photographs, collections, memorabilia and other personal belongings can often be packed well before you sell.
You're going to have to pack them eventually anyway.
If you have a significant amount of furniture or belongings you're keeping, renting a POD or another portable storage container can be a good option. You can gradually load it as you work through the house and get those belongings out of the way before your home is photographed and shown to buyers.
Sell, Donate or Get Rid of What You're Not Taking
Not everything needs to make the move with you, and there are plenty of ways to get things out of the house.
Sell It
Facebook Marketplace can work well for furniture, tools, exercise equipment, outdoor furniture and other items that still have some value.
A traditional yard sale is another option. You may not get top dollar for everything, but it can be an easy way to clear out a lot of belongings in a single weekend.
Donate It
Things that aren't worth the effort of selling may still be useful to someone else.
Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity and other local charities may be options for donating clothing, furniture, household goods, building materials and other usable belongings.
Throw It Away
If you've lived in a home for decades, there's also a good chance you've accumulated things that simply need to go.
For a larger cleanout, renting a dumpster can make the process much easier than making repeated trips to the dump.
You can also hire a local junk removal company. Sometimes paying someone to clear out in a few hours what might take you several weekends is money well spent.
Most people won't use just one of these approaches. You might sell some things, donate others, fill a dumpster and put everything you're keeping into storage.
Why Decluttering Helps Your Home Sell
Decluttering isn't just about making moving easier.
A home generally shows best when it is minimally furnished and decorated.
That doesn't mean your house needs to be empty.
Furniture helps buyers understand how a room can be used and gives them a sense of scale. But too much furniture can make the same room feel smaller than it really is.
The same principle applies to decorations and personal belongings.
When buyers walk through your home, we want them looking at the house itself.
We want them noticing the kitchen, flooring, windows, room sizes, backyard and floor plan. Most importantly, we want them imagining what it would be like to live there.
Your family photos, collections and personal decorating aren't bad things. They're part of what made the house your home.
But when you're selling, too many personal belongings can sometimes make it harder for another family to picture the house becoming their home.
You're not trying to remove everything that made the house your home. You're simply making room for buyers to imagine making it theirs.
Don't Just Move Everything Into the Garage
One temptation when preparing a home for sale is to take everything you don't know what to do with and put it in the garage or closets.
That solves one problem but creates another.
Buyers look inside closets, pantries and garages too.
A closet with some open space can make it feel larger and reinforce that the home has adequate storage. A closet packed from floor to ceiling can have the opposite effect.
The same applies to the garage.
It doesn't need to be completely empty, but buyers should be able to see the space and understand how they could use it.
Downsizing Makes the Decisions Even More Important
For homeowners who have lived in the same house for 20 or 30 years, moving to a smaller home can require a different mindset.
The question isn't simply, "Do I want to keep this?"
It's also, "Does this belong in the next stage of my life?"
If you're moving from a larger family home into something smaller, you may have fewer bedrooms, less garage space, fewer closets and less room for furniture.
Deciding what you're actually going to use in the next home can save you from paying to pack and move things that you'll end up getting rid of after you arrive.
It can also be helpful to think about what you want from your next home before you start packing. Some homeowners want less maintenance. Others want a single-story floor plan, a smaller yard, fewer unused bedrooms or a community where exterior maintenance is reduced.
Knowing what you're moving to can make it much easier to decide what you're taking with you.
Start Before You're Ready to Put the Home on the Market
If you've lived in your home for decades, sorting through everything you've accumulated can seem overwhelming.
But you don't have to do it all at once.
Start a few months ahead of time.
Clean out a closet this weekend. Do another room next weekend. List a few things for sale. Make a donation run. Fill a few boxes.
Little by little, the house becomes easier to manage.
By starting early, you're accomplishing two things at the same time:
You're preparing for your move and preparing your home for sale.
Have Your Realtor Walk Through the Home Early
If you're thinking about selling sometime in the next few months, you don't have to wait until the house is cleaned out and you're ready to put a sign in the yard before talking with a Realtor.
In fact, I'd rather see the home early.
I can walk through it with you and help identify what I would pack, remove, leave alone or potentially improve before putting the home on the market.
Sometimes sellers are surprised by the things I tell them not to spend money on.
The goal isn't to make your home perfect.
The goal is to present it in a way that appeals to the largest possible number of buyers and gives them the opportunity to picture themselves living there.
The earlier we start planning, the easier that process usually becomes.
If you're considering selling a home in Rocklin, Loomis, Auburn, Granite Bay, Lincoln or elsewhere in the area, I'm happy to meet with you well before you're ready to sell and help you put together a plan.
Contact Patrick Hake to start planning your home sale.
Patrick Hake Call or text: (916) 316-5626
Broker Associate
eXp Realty of California
License #01349088
www.OwnPlacer.com/patrick-hake.php
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