Every family experiences a difficult time once in their lifetime. When a dear one passes away, the family is left to decide on what should be done with the belongings, treasures and other possessions of the deceased member. In a situation like this, emotions are intense and there’s a lot to organize. Below are tips that will help you organize a home after a death.
1. If you plan to sell the home after a death, it is always good to involve a real estate agent. A realtor can guide you on areas that need fixing or special attention, which could save time and money involved in the death cleanup process. If the death occurred at home, along with disclosing this fact to the agent it is important to inform potential buyers too.
2. Remember health and safety must be your first priority. If the deceased member suffered from a long-lasting illness, was a hoarder, or if it was an unattended death, getting a professional death cleanup done is the way to go. Reach out to a reputable bio-hazard cleaning company like One Prime Services.
Items like furniture, clothes, and other porous materials are quick in absorbing odour producing bacteria and may be difficult to clean and restore. In such an event, it may be best to discard the item altogether.
3. Decide on what you want to keep and what you plan to give away. Take all the items and sort them into three categories; keep, donate, and discard. If you are not sure of what to do with certain items, keep them aside and consult other family members before taking any step.
4. Check places that are often unnoticed like pockets on clothes, drawers, boxes, old wallets or purses properly as they could accidentally hide important/treasured items. Do not forget to scan storage areas like basements, attics, garages, etc. thoroughly. It’s important to clean such items in a home after a death.
5. A home after a death usually has a truckload of items. And sometimes, even after the family of the deceased has cleared out many of the items, you may still find the home left with various items. In such a case, look into hiring an estate sale company to organise a sale. This will save you the time and effort. Such companies also handle the disposal/donation of things that remain unsold.
However, if you prefer distributing the remaining items on your own, there are a few more steps to follow.
- Firstly, remove the items you plan to keep. Then arrange transportation with your relatives for items they would like to keep as well. This will help to avoid any confusion as the remaining items are disposed of. It might also help to call attention towards items that could have been neglected and gone missing.
- A home after a death usually has unusable items like broken furniture, unwanted papers, and torn clothes, among others. Such items should be discarded. This will clear up the room and provide you with more space to work comfortably. If you feel anxious, taking out a huge amount of what has accumulated can also make the next part of the process seem much simpler.
- Think about what can be sold of to people in need. There are people out there who can put these items to best use. Here, you have to give a thought to not only what items have financial value but also understand the time period some items take to sell and whether it makes sense to invest time and effort in trying to sell them.
- Your next step in organizing a home after a death will be based on what you are left with. If there are only a few items remaining to sell, you could either choose to have a garage sale or go online on marketing platforms and list your products. This can be a good way to reach out to potential customers.
- After trying all alternatives, if you still have any items remaining, donate to charity. Some organizations have pick up services wherein they come and pick up items from your home at a convenient time. Some groups have drop off centers where you can give your donations. For items like clothes, shoes, magazines, etc. donation bins are an excellent option. These simple basic tips should help you organize a home after a death.
Although it’s not a pleasing topic, it is always good to discuss a course of action before a death takes place. This helps to reduce confusion and allows all family members to focus on what to do while organizing a home after a death. We understand how difficult and stressful it can be for you and your family to deal with events like this, hence One Prime Services is here to help you through it. Reach us on 1300 774 631 for Trauma Cleaning Services.