Casting Out Clutter! (Cont)

Keep in mind that nothing is sacred when a house is on the market. Anything that can be opened in any room – closets, drawers, cabinets, shower curtains, pantry doors – will be explored by potential buyers. Clean out and organize closets, drawers and the pantry. Keep the shower spotless and remove shampoo and conditioner bottles or any other personal care items.

In the bedroom, remove half the clothes from each closet, put shoes on a rack and hang purses and belts on pegs or organizers. Don’t forget to recycle all those newspapers you have stashed in the hall closet. Leave no cabinet door unopened or unclean.

In her book, Simple Steps You Can Take to Sell Your Home Faster And for More Money in Any Market, Ilyce R. Glink suggests creating a “clutter collector” in areas where papers and writing utensils seem to collect.

Glink’s clutter collector is a large, flat storage box that’s kept where mail and schoolwork seem to end up each day. Keep all receipts, old phone messages, pens and pencils, children’s artwork, permission slips and other miscellaneous papers in the box. Just before a potential buyer is scheduled to arrive for a showing, store the cutter collector underneath a bed.

Whew! Now that you’ve decluttered your house, what do you do with the items that you no longer need but are still usable? You have several options. If you donate them to a charity, you may be able to receive an income tax deduction for the value amount. An added bonus: Often these organizations will pick up donations so you can spend your time elsewhere.

You can always sell unwanted items through consignment shops, classified ads, garage sales, tag sales or an auction. It might be nice to have a little extra cash to help pay moving expenses. But if you can’t bear to part with these unnecessary treasures, self-storage may be the right answer for you. Rented storage units are particularly convenient places to keep furniture, seasonal sports gear, holiday decorations, and patio furniture.

If clearing clutter seems like an overwhelming task, just remember two things. First, reducing clutter makes each room easier to clean. There are fewer objects to move when dusting and vacuuming. And don’t forget what’s down the road: The move. The more you clean out or box up, the easier it will be to prepare to move after your house sells. Since you’ll have more important things to do at that time, doesn’t it make sense to get it done before your buyer looks at the house?