How do you prepare for an estate cleanout when you don't know where to start?

Start by securing the property and documenting its current state with photos. Then work room by room using four categories, keep, sell, donate, and discard, before scheduling a junk removal appointment to clear everything that will not be donated or sold. 

Estate cleanouts can feel impossible to start, often because the projects themselves are huge. People can accumulate a tremendous volume of stuff over the course of a lifetime. So it helps to break the project into pieces so it is more manageable.

The first step, before junk removal is even in the picture, is to secure the property and set aside valuables, important documents, and sentimental items. Those are the items you cannot get back once a cleanout begins.

It also helps to photograph each room in its current state. That gives you a record for the estate, the insurers, and family members who can’t be there in person.

From there, the work can proceed room by room. It helps to use four simple categories as you go: keep, sell, donate, and discard. Once the keep and sell piles are set aside, you will then have a clear picture of what all needs to leave.

That final clearing is where a junk removal service takes the weight off. The Junkluggers of North Puget Sound handles estate cleanouts with patience and care, carrying items out from any floor and sorting what we collect so usable furniture and goods are donated and rehomed rather than sent to a landfill. For any items donated, you can expect donation receipts to be provided, which can matter for the estate’s recordkeeping.

Need help with an estate cleanout? Schedule your pickup online. The Junkluggers of North Puget Sound serves Everett, Marysville, Lake Stevens, Snohomish, Stanwood, Mukilteo, and Bothell.