Whether you consider yourself a baby boomer, an empty-nester, a Senior, or you're looking for a more simplified life, you'll be faced with the question of, "What do I do with all this stuff?".
Condo living offers some fantastic advantages over single-family residences, perhaps one of the most desired is eliminating the workload that a larger home requires.
However, many homeowners are overwhelmed with the task of sorting through decades of treasures, mementos, and dozens of boxes saved over the years. After all, condominiums are typically small and lack the square footage or the storage that you currently have. So you'll need to scale down and simplify.
You'll want to have a strategy on how to scale down your belongings and how to determine what you'll be taking with you before going out shopping for your nex home.
Turns out that most adult children don't want the china, the old mantle clock, their childhood artwork, or Great Aunt Mary's porcelain collection.
Here are some tips to help you de-clutter, organize, and simplify so you can move forward to the rewards that a more streamlined life offers.
1. Enjoy those precious items now. The beautiful stemware that has sat in your cabinet waiting. Take it out and use it the next time you make breakfast. If not now, when? Go ahead relish your treasures right now.
2. Review your furniture. Most likely you won't have enough space to take everything. Make a list, determine which are the essential pieces of furniture. Next, which items you can gift, sell, or donate.
3. Hire a home organizer. It can be absolutely overwhelming to take on the task of going through every, closet, drawer, cabinet, or box in your current home. If you find yourself without assistance, an organizer can help you and free you from added stress.
A home organizer can help you sort, move, and pack items. They are very familiar with the emotions and effort that goes into preparing for a home transition. Let us know if like to be put you in touch with a professional organizer. They can arrange a consultation and share how they could assist you.
4. Donate! This is a great way to share your heirlooms that need a new home. Your donation can truly be a blessing to organizations that assist families in crisis, education programs, and community outreach organizations.
You may even have some Art or historic items that a local museum would love to have.
5. Hire a REALTOR - that has experience with helping owners during this exciting, yet sometimes daunting process.
We have had the pleasure of successfully assisting many former clients with this process. Getting them moved from a beloved property into a new condominium they are happy to call home.
We can connect you to handymen, movers, organizers, estate sale companies, and other service providers necessary to make the transition to your new home as easy as possible.
There are a variety of reasons to downsize: closer proximity to children or grandchildren, one-level living, a desire for a more vibrant community, security, or the ease of turn-key living.
6. Packing. Don't make the mistake of just putting random items in boxes. Use a system to be able to easily locate items when you get to your next home. Colored markers are a fantastic way of making finding items easier. Make a list of colors and what room or items they represent. For instance: blue is for kitchen items. Take the blue marker and put a big X on the top and the all 4 sides of the box. This way you will be able to spot them. You can have the movers group boxes according to color.
Contact us if you would like to schedule a consultation.