Selling your home is made easier if you declutter first. It seems more manageable to think of packing to move and the very best thing is that it will make your home much more appealing to the potential buyers!
A clutter free home look more spacious and space sells! Everyone wants a larger home and space sells, it can make your home worth more and help to achieve your asking price.
Secondly, decluttering will help you in the process of making decisions about that to take to the next home.
When you organise your home you will feel so much better within yourself. For wellbeing and peace of mind a clutter free home is a really great start.
One of the best ways to approach decluttering is to tackle your home, room by room.
How you go about decluttering each room will vary depending on your home, the room, how many people use that room, how you use the space and what you hope it will be like at the end.
Just choose a room that you feel more motivated to tackle and make a start.
There are a few principles you can use to guide you whichever room you choose to declutter first.
Ask yourself 3 questions about each item every time - Do you love it? Do you use it? Does it add value in some way? This will make it easier to decide when you can let things go.
Make a start and it won’t be as difficult as you think. Pick up an item and use this checklist to make decisions as you go along.
• When was the last time you used this item? If you can't remember the last time you used it then unless it's a high-value or seasonal item consider whether you need to keep it. If it's not a good day to declutter then try again tomorrow.
• For each room you come to, think about what you use the space for - What function does it serve and therefore what items do you need in this room and what could be kept elsewhere?
• What do you want the end result to look and feel like? - Do you want the room to be light and airy or warm or cosy? Keep this in mind when you're deciding which items to keep and which to get rid of.
• Consider whether you have adequate storage for the items you're keeping - Don't just buy new storage to make up for the fact you can’t decide what to get rid of! However, there are tidy caddies for kitchen cupboards, magazines or toiletries that may be useful.
• If you get stuck - Move on. Don't lose momentum, just put that item, cupboard or room aside for today and come back fresh tomorrow.
• Deal with your unwanted clutter right away - Don't pile it up to deal with at a later date.
When making decisions about items you have the following options to reduce your clutter –
If it has value bit you just don’t need it – sell it on eBay or donate it to a charity shop or via a local group.
If it’s broken or unusable – take it to the refuse tip or put it safely in the bin.
If you may need it within the time before selling your home – tidy the garage or the loft or cellar and store some items neatly away.
If it’s in the way, blocking a view from the window, incongruous with your styling scheme or just too bulky for the space and a smaller coffee table or item would be better, but you might need it for the next house – consider paying for temporary storage until you move home.
Set a target of what you want to achieve and give yourself a treat when you’ve achieved it. A tea break with a favourite snack, a walk in the park or a telephone call with a friend – it’s your treat – you decide!
If you can’t face the decluttering or you are just too busy to get it done, then there are decluttering professionals who can help you. They will charge an hourly rate to support you or a fixed fee to provide an e-decluttering solution report specifically for your room or whole property.
If you need help to get your decluttering and organising off the launch pad, then visit House Wow Services.
At easyStorage, we have plenty of further decluttering advice including tips on: Making Decluttering Easy, Ideas to Declutter at Home and What Happens After Decluttering.
And if you need to find out more about how easyStorage could help you declutter, simply call 0333 241 3137 where one of our team will be delighted to help you.
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