Estate Sale #1 Rule: Don’t Throw Anything Away
Sell? Donate? Recycle? Dispose?
Here’s some tips on evaluating the contents of your estate to maximize revenue & minimize disposal fees.
Whenever a client asks “what’s the first rule of having an estate sale?” the answer is always the same: “Don’t throw anything away!” Why? Here’s a list of reasons why a thorough estate appraisal is important before you start deciding what “to keep” and what’s “to throw away.”
Valuable Documents - sometimes what looks like a mess of papers, may actually be important estate documents, like insurance policies, deeds, titles, tax returns, and documentation which might up the resale value of certain property items. Be sure to thoroughly go threw these items and match them up to specific estate areas. Bring some folders and start sorting documents first, then decide what might be needed in the future.
Fairness to Family - allow everyone involved in the family’s estate sale process an adequate opportunity to evaluate what items might be desired or disposed. Someone might have an affinity for an item of a loved one that might otherwise be valueless. Once those decisions have been made, then we’ll green light the evaluation process for the remainder of the estate.
Everything Has Value - even if something looks old, dirty, broken or out-dated, there may be value to someone out there. We’d rather have a large $1 item area at your estate sale and make you extra money, than have your estate incur a large bill for waste disposal fees. Sometimes things that appear old or valueless may have significant value to someone. Call an estate specialist to help make these evaluations.
Donations - items that do not sell or might seem useless may also be eligible for donation. We’ll work with local charities to have as many items removed or dropped off as a donation and a tax write-off for the client, the estate or heir(s), as applicable. The more items either sold, donated, or recycled, the less the removal & disposal charges will be for the estate.
Cash in the Trash - even with the items that are, in fact, garbage, we’ll help you make money on these items as well. Salvage items may sell to someone on a social media marketplace. Even scrap metal recycling may bring in more revenue for your estate sale, whereas a dumpster costs you money. We include salvage and scrap services as needed to make the clean-out process seamless for you.