Home Improvement and Real Estate

The American economy benefits enormously from consumers. The advertising industry convinces people to buy things, and then they do. Purchasing products and paying for services is a justifiable way to reward oneself for hard work. Year after year we buy new things, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this. Unfortunately, being a consumer also means that as we buy more things, there will inevitably be less room for those things in our houses. This means we have to discard some of our possessions every once in a while to make room for new ones. You only have to flip the channel to A&E to see the dreadful side effects of holding onto too much stuff, which is displayed on the television show, Hoarders. Fortunately, there are a number of ways for you to organize your house and get rid of items you do not put to use. In cases that require drastic measures to be taken, cheap self storage may be of assistance.

If your house is overcrowded with your belongings, it may be time to do some spring cleaning, even if it’s only January. Here are some techniques to liberate your house from clutter:

Focus on your closets first. Closets can become overfilled quickly. You should clean them out at least every two years, if not more often. You’ll need to make two, separate piles. In the first pile, you should put all the clothes and other things you want to keep. In the second pile, you should put all the things you have not worn or used in the last two years. These things can be donated or thrown away. Once you finish sorting out your closet into these two heaps, you are ready to make a trip to Goodwill or a nearby shelter to donate the things you rarely use.  Giving some of your stuff to others in need will be gratifying, and it will also give you the opportunity to receive a tax write off. To efficiently store everything you decide to keep in your closet, you can purchase and install shelving, drawers, and closet rods. Doing so will help you create more usable space in your closet.

Regularly clear out space in your garage and attic. It is an astute decision to purge the garage and attic of unwanted things every year or so. The garage and attic are both places where we tend to put anything and everything we don’t use in the house. As you are cleaning these areas, you should focus on removing things that do not belong. For instance, tools, lawnmowers, and bikes belong in the garage. Old televisions, couches, and tables do not belong in the garage, so focus on those items first. If you haven’t used something that doesn’t belong in the garage for a while, and there is no room for it in your house, toss it out or donate it. After you’ve cleared out everything that does not belong, you can start to organize. You can add shelves on the walls and install racks in both the garage and attic. Some racks can even be mounted on the ceilings. Once you’re done organizing everything, you should sweep the areas to get rid of excess dust and dirt.

Minimize the mess throughout your home. You’ll need to make a keep pile and a discard pile for your whole house too. Do one room at a time. Getting rid of a whole house’s clutter can be a tiring and time-consuming mission. Start with the bathroom and kitchen. These rooms usually require the least amount of work. Then move to the bedrooms. The last room you should tackle is the living room, which will probably be the most difficult. Buy storage crates to put small items in. Group similar items together and store them in the same storage crates. Pay special attention to bookcases, shelves, and tables. Stuff has a tendency to overtake those areas. If you have a bunch of CDs, upload them on your computer, and then sell them to a used music store. Sell old books you haven’t read in years on Amazon. Figure out what movies and TV shows you can watch on Netflix and Hulu, and get rid of some of your DVDs.

If you are methodical about it, eliminating clutter in your home does not have to be a bother. Once you’ve cleaned out your closets, garage, attic, and whole house, you may still have more stuff than your house can reasonably accommodate. If this happens, renting a self storage unit temporarily may be useful.