House clearance strategy

poppystar

Hi. I am moving on to the next stage in things and need to get the house cleared pre sale. I’m getting so much conflicting advice (mainly from people who have never done it!) so I’m hoping for tips from those of you on here who have been through this before.

It’s been variously suggested that I should get a skip, let charities have what they want and take other stuff to the tip or use an auction house or house clearance company.

Taking stuff to the tip is not really on for me due to health issues but there is space for a skip. I really want to ensure that I’m not duplicating effort too. I’d also like to be as kind to the environment as possible. I have no idea what to expect house clearance people to do - would they clear things out of cupboards? do they take anything and everything? for example - or how to ensure I find a reputable one (sadly I know no one who has been through this in the area). Or even what questions I should ask or what I should expect to pay.

At present all essential paperwork has been removed plus sentimental bits that I could find. I do need to have a closer look in each cupboard though as stuff is very mixed up. There are no valuable heirlooms or works of art in there of that I’m sure.

I’m aware that all of this might be even more difficult with current lockdown restrictions.

Any guidance on dos and don’ts much appreciated. Thanks.

Savvy_Sue

Our house clearance company was brilliant, did everything, would clear cupboards and clean everything afterwards. We used them first to do an initial clear, to 'stage' the property for sale, and then to do the final clear and clean. And they aimed to get as much as possible recycled. This was after the auction house had been in and taken what they were prepared to sell, and they came recommended from the auction house. 

So IF there is anything saleable, I'd use an auction house, then ask for a recommended house clearance company. If not, I might still ring round a few auction houses and see if they work with a particular company. 

Some charities will offer a full house clearance, but that's what you need, not just a 'take what we think we can sell' but a full house clearance. 

If you're in Berkshire, I can give you a recommendation. 

I wouldn't do a skip for the same reason as I wouldn't do a tip run or 60: too much like hard work, especially if you have health issues, plus I'd expect you to need more than one skip for the contents of a house, plus a skip doesn't generally recycle (except the informal skip-diving which goes on when people see something they like the look of - conversely you may find your skip full of
someone else's rubbish!)

Cost: not cheap. We paid over £1000 some years ago, but believe me it was worth every single penny ... It was a large house, with a lot of 'stuff' in it! 

JGB1955

I paid in the region of £750 to a house clearance company to empty my father's house of everything - clothes, furniture, garage, electrical items, garden shed, 30+ years of possessions etc etc.  They sorted the items into a) things they could recycle b) items for charitable donations, c) items for disposal.  I made sure they had a waste disposal licence.  They thought the job would take a day but it took an extra half day.  The house was left totally empty, apart from the pile of random keys I had asked them to keep back.  We had already taken anything of sentimental value.  It was money well spent.... particularly as we exchanged and completed the sale of the house the following day - we were sailing a bit close to the wind on that one!

theoretica

Sounds like you want a house clearance company - they will take everything (some will even clean afterwards if that is what you want) or only what you ask them to and the good ones sort out what can be reused or recycled.

The one thing you need to check is that they have a waste licence.  There was a case round here where flytipping was found which included an address and it turned out to have been cowboys paid to clear a house.  If the person paying for house clearance can demonstrate they checked for a waste licence then they are protected if this happens - companies are likely to have this on their website.

TBagpuss

A good house clearance company will take everything, and they will likely then sort it and sell anything they think is saleable, and dispose of the rest. 
If there is a reasonable amount which is saleable then they may do a deal where they don't charge for the clearance but keep the sale proceeds, but I think this is only likely to be available if here is  a reasonable amount of good-quality stuff, mostly you will pay.

get a couple of quotes, and check that whoever you use has a a  valid waste disposal licence. 

I don't think  that getting a skip would save you any money compared with house clearance firm so would probably only be worth while if there is very little to dispose of and if you have the energy to move everything out to the skip. 
Charities - if there is a reasonable amount of stuff that is likely to be of use they may be prepared to take everything and dispose of what they can't use / sell, but i suspect that would only work if the majority of what's there is likely to be usable or sellable, so they're only disposing of a small proportion of what they take, and they may not be doing it at all at present with Covid, closed shops etc. You could however contact them and offer things like white goods if they are able to arrange to collect them, which won't save you any money but would means less goes to landfill. 

I know local to me there is an organization which will collect and refurbish washing machines and other white goods to give to people who are leaving refuges having fled domestic abuse, for example, but they only take the white goods, they don't do house clearances. 

Bobziz

Charity shops, eBay, freecycle and the tip worked for us. Hard work, but necessary for emotional reasons. 

Marcon

What's your priority? If (as it sounds) it is getting rid of stuff with absolute minimum hassle and at maximum speed, get quotes from a couple of house clearance firms. Ebay is a pain; many charity shops aren't accepting donations because they are closed until further notice and have no storage space left; free cycle can also be a pain, with people promising faithfully to show up then failing to do so (and failing to tell you they won't be bothering).

KxMx

I've just done this myself in the last couple of weeks.

As I went through the various stages I found it very helpful to keep a notebook and pen to track everything. 

After I had finished sorting through all contents, and knew what was what, I saw someone recommended on a local Facebook group, checked their page, absolutely glowing reviews. I verified their waste license. 

We discussed what was required on the phone and he came out to see everything in person. He then gave me a quote which I accepted. £500 to clear a 2 bed bungalow in rural area. Given that he later said it would cost him £320 at the tip to empty van I was satisfied I wasn't ripped off. 

He and two colleagues came and did the clearance. They cleared one room while I sat in the kitchen, I then stayed in that first room while they worked on a chair I'd marked to be left. I brought a book, water bottle and had lunch delivered from a local cafe. 

He asked permission to sell on some items which I agreed to, more went to the tip than I'd have liked but I needed someone else to do the job quickly. And lots of places are just not accepting donations at the moment.

Aside from clearance family took rugs, sofa, cooker, fridge freezer, tv, dining table and chairs. 
I put aside 8 black bags full and 4 boxes for a charity I volunteer with and who are collecting (clearance firm did a separately charged job where they took them from bungalow to my house). 2 boxes of medical supplies weighing 7.5kg I posted off to a charity (also transported as above) Cupboard food I took to a local appeal just before Christmas. The load of egg boxes and food wrap/bags were accepted by another charity and they went into their donation trolley at local Asda. 
So under the circumstances not too bad. 

Absolutely everything was taken apart from 4 large items later collected by a relative. And yes cupboards and a shed was emptied, as well as a conservatory full of rubbish. They even cleared the detritus from the garden. 

getmore4less

Our last clearance was done over a long time as the property was kept.
Auction, charity, tip was the primary.
Some stuff was just put by the road soon goes. 
The person living in the place was not happy with people visiting so local sales sites and freecycle was not an option.

Their local tip had restrictions on volume per trip but no charges if careful.
In my current area that would not be possible they charge for a lot of stuff now.

With time and lockdown I would go clearance option unless I could spread it out over the next year 
Some local people have done some free at end of drive over the last few and it takes time for stuff to go not so many people out and about.

comeandgo

Are you sure the deceased person did not hoard money?  When my dad died my mum found thousands of pounds hidden away in clothes and furnishings and only found the money as she herself was getting rid of his things, she had no idea he was doing it.  

jasdog

British Heart Foundation we paid them £250 they took all the items left in the house it included furniture clothes and bricka brack.They like you to bag/box things up just to cut down on time spent loading thier van.