fisker-kondo effect

[KONTRARIAN]

Hi, I'm a 55 yo male who's lived on both coasts and in TX. I use this blog as inspiration. I signed up today because of today's post by JF to which ethics are ascribed "I will spend ...effort finding a way to get rid of things I no longer need...instead of just throwing them in the trash" and I want to pose a question. Is this the best part of the forum or where would I post? I already know what I'm going to do, but the ideology intrigued me as it seems to be the basis for hoarding (aka, getting rid of one's own stuff). Apropos for this season, n'est-ce pas?

It's this: You've inherited a house of stuff (basement, first floor, second floor, attic) that's been occupied since the summer Nixon was going to be impeached--do you (a) spend the next 20 years finding a place for each misfit toy or (b) take three days to have people put it all out into a single dumpster & have it taken to a landfill where the excess pressure will generate heat which can be vented & converted to energy?

[ertyu]

I would do something in the middle.

First I would see if there is any stuff that is easy and fast to sell, and sell that.

Then I would see what stuff people might want to get for free. I am assuming if you posted something along the lines of, "hey, inherited a house, about to throw all the crap out, come rummage if you'd like something" multiple people would turn up. Have these people cart off what they think they can use.

Once you're down to actual, sincere trash, get that to a landfill.

[KONTRARIAN]

Thanks. I agree on principle. It was his "..effort.." comment that really struck me and I guess I am a relativist. (as are you)

[fiby41]

Yardsale?

[black_son_of_gray]

Another approach in the "middle" is to hire a company that will run an estate sale for you. They obviously take a (perhaps sizable) chunk of the proceeds, but you'd likely get some cash without much of the hassle- and you'd be sending this "stuff" back out into the world where people can make productive use of it. My current desk and bookshelf were bought this way for something like $40 from an estate sale down the street. I lugged them back home by hand. When we move, we'll send them back out into the world via Craigslist, probably getting more than what we paid for them.

I mean, even if hiring the estate sale company means no profits to you at all... 1) You'd still prevent the stuff from going immediately to a landfill and 2) you wouldn't have to pay to have the stuff hauled away (the buyers do that for you).

Good luck and welcome!

[Dream of Freedom]

I'd search through it for the "treasure", because I enjoy that type of thing. Then I'd just bring the rest to goodwill, which is what I normally do with things I don't want, or hire an auctioneer to sell it if there was a lot of stuff.

[jacob]

If I hadn't managed to talk a relative into a round of Swedish death cleaning before they left me with an entire house, I'd go about it the following way:

First, I'd go looking for treasures. That's things that are easy to sell again. Basically whatever falls under the category of "what would a burglar steal" and then sell those. You'd have to get familiar with the standard outlets where you live. For me it's craigslist and ebay. Other places use other sites. Facebook is getting popular too. While the listing (and the delivery/transaction) can seem overwhelming/frustrating initially, you'll get the routine after a few successes. This part is no different than decluttering your own stuff. I reserve a corner/closet for things that are listed or will be listed for sale. They've already been photographed, weighed for shipping, and packaged. You can brings those items to your house.

Next, a running estate sale. The smartest ones I've seen put the stuff on tables in the living room (or some other room) much like a permanent yard sale. If the place has a garage, that would also work. People could go through the table(s) and pick up what they wanted. The benefit here is not having to move things in and outside all the time. Downside is that you'd have to go to the premises for each sale if you don't live there.

After sales die down (or you lose patience) start bagging up useful things (clothes, appliances, ... ) for thrift stores. In some places thrift stores and charities will come around and pick up bags from porches. In other places, you have to call them. In most places, you have to deliver yourself. More places will pick up furniture. Many thrift stores will take everything. Some (rich California!) are so overwhelmed with stuff and will ask you to take stuff back.

Alternatively, some areas (like where we live), it is understood that if something is put in the back alley, it's free for the taking. We've gotten rid of stuff that way too. There's also been stuff that's been impossible to get rid of. You can help this process along by making a post under the "Free section" on craigslist. Remember to take it down when the stuff is gone. ("Free microwave sitting at the curb on 11th and 51st. First come, first serve. Don't contact me. Will remove listing when gone.")

Final step---at this point you'll only have trash left---is to throw things out. This can go in regular garbage ... or you can rent a container and fill it if you don't have the patience to space it out over weeks.

You can technically do all these concurrently. No need to wait throwing out junk as in the last step while finding stuff to sell in the first step. I think the biggest hang up is when one presumes that things are worth a lot more than what people are willing to pay for them.

Ultimately, you have a trilemma. The process can either be convenient, cheap/profitable, or responsible. Pick any two. I prefer profitable and responsible => it takes more time, but I can speed up the process by sacrificing profit (lowering the price, ultimately giving things away).

To get an idea of the effort when we moved into the RV back in 2008, we had to downsize a household worth of goods (that otherwise filled a 26ft moving truck during out previous move). This took about 3 weeks. IIRC, it took two yard sales (various appliances and knick-knack), lots of craigslisting (the furniture, some free, some for profit), amazon (books), no ebay, at least one trip to the thrift store, and filling our garbage container to the brim every week, mostly with old "school" notes/work.

[KONTRARIAN]

Thanks JF

[Gilberto de Piento]

Where I am at it is common to put a big pile of the unsold items on the curb, post it with a pic and brief description on Craigslist, and let people haul some of it away that way. The downside is that you still have to pick up and dispose of what is left somehow.

Scrappers will haul away any good sized metal objects if you put them on the curb. Examples: metal bed frames, grills, appliances. Again, post them on Craigslist.