If you’re moving into a smaller place, you might find that you’ve just got too much stuff to make it work. Your furniture might be too big or your collections to wide-ranging, but space will quickly become an issue. If you’re looking to maximize your square footage, you might want to follow the tips below.
Throw out the Junk
The first thing to do when you have too much stuff for your new place is to get rid of the junk. While there are certainly some items of value that have to make the move, you’ll probably be surprised to see how many items you own that can go straight to the dump. If you’ve got quite a bit to throw out, look into a skip bin hire so that you don’t have to deal with the details of disposal on your own. If you can get rid of the junk, you’ll be able to make your move a bit less cluttered.
Sell it Off
Once you get rid of the junk, start trying to figure out if you’ve got anything that’s worth selling. Whether you put it up on an online auction site or you sell it in a yard sale, some of the excess possessions can be converted into cash. Not only will this help you to free up space in your new place, but it will also allow you to raise money to pay for some of your other moving expenses. Once you’re done, you can move on to the final step.
Start Donating
If you don’t feel like selling your items that are in good condition, you might want to consider donating them to a local charity. As long as the items are clean and relatively modern, most charities will be able to either get them to those in need or sell them off to raise funds. If you are lucky, you might even be able to find a charity that’s willing to drive to your current home in order to pick up your donated items. Depending on where you live, you may also be able to get a reasonable tax write-off in exchange for your generosity.
Hold a Yard Sale
When you find yourself cleaning out your home or garage of excess items, gather everything that is still usable and unbroken and hold a yard sale on a Saturday. That way, you can get rid of your excess items you do not want or need anymore, and you can bless the community by selling it all to people for cheap. Yard sales are fun, you get to sell off your useless items and you get to interact and hang out with members of the community all at the same time.
When you’ve got too much for your new home, your goal should be to downsize where you can. Sell what’s got value, donate what’s in good condition, and make sure to throw out the rest. Once you’ve cleaned up a bit, you should be able to move into a new home with few space issues. Though your new space will fill up in time, you’ll be able to start over from a blank slate.
