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You may have heard of the HGTV series “Love It or List It.” In this show, homeowners have to decide whether they want to stay in the home that an interior designer makes more beautiful and functional or list it with the help of her co-star, who is a real estate agent. Well, in this post, we are going to do something similar. We’re going to help you declutter your home by helping you decide to “keep it or toss it.” This is especially important if you need to sell your house fast this spring. Read on to learn more about major clutter-causing items you should keep or toss. Don’t forget to reflect on the question after each section. 

Expired Food or Toiletries

Canned food and old toiletries are some of the most prominent forms of clutter in the home. It is tempting to ignore items in the cabinets and pantry because they don’t go bad as quickly as most perishable foods. Additionally, old toothpaste tubes, hair spray cans, and other toiletries are something else that is easy to forget to toss out. Perhaps it’s because you’re trying to get the last drop out of them before tossing them away. 

With your old non-perishable goods and left-over cans and bottles, are you going to:

Keep them or toss them?

Unnecessary or Oversized Furniture

Whether you plan to move out of your home this spring or decide to stay, having large furniture pieces may rob you of the space you need. So instead of keeping large couches, California king-sized beds, huge recliners, or big tables, consider getting rid of them. Instead, replace them with something that will allow your space to be much more functional.  

When it comes to your unbelievably large furniture pieces, are you going to:

Keep them or toss them?

Excess Clothing

Let’s face it. Many of the clothes you have in your wardrobe are probably not coming back into style any time soon, if ever. So instead of waiting for platform shoes and bell-bottoms to become the norm again, it may be a good idea to toss them and any other clothing that is no longer trendy. Remember that you don’t have to throw these items in the trash. Local thrift stores are filled with people looking for great deals on some of the brand items you are willing to toss out. Alternatively, if you want to make a few bucks on your old clothes, consider teaming up with a local consignment shop. You can also sell your gently used items on an internet marketplace like e-Bay or Facebook. 

So with your excess clothes, are you going to:

Keep them or toss them?

Clutter in Your Yard

Old dog bowls, garden hoses, loose firewood, and children’s toys can make your yard look unkempt. This is not good when your goal is to sell your house. Your outdoors is one of the most visible parts of your home. So keeping chaotic clutter strewn throughout the yard may turn off potential buyers. If you decide to remain in your home, it can ruin your curb appeal and start to invite unwanted pests. 

If you have clutter in your yard, are you going to:

Keep it or toss it?

Hopefully, after reading about these items, you’ve decided to toss most of them. After all, getting rid of these items will help declutter your home. However, there will be some precious items that you won’t be able to get rid of, such as photos, items given to you by someone special, and your favorite monogrammed robes. Your realtor may encourage you to keep these personal items out of sight if you’re planning to move. So for those things you can’t let go of, at least store them somewhere in your home or purchase storage space until you sell your home. 

Keeping organized can be a nightmare but if you do a little bit every day you will get on top of it from then onwards you just need to set aside a little bit of time every so often to maintain the hard work that you initially put in. Knowing where to start is part of the battle. However, if you break larger jobs, and larger areas down into smaller more manageable tasks then you will make the process a lot easier on yourself, and a lot more enjoyable.

Tips That Will Help You Organize Your Space

Make Things You Use Easily Accessible

Organizing and doing so effectively is all about ensuring that you know what you have and that you have access to what you have when you need it. Accessibility is an issue that you need to deal with head-on straight away. If things are not easily accessible then you will simply not use them, and they would be better off being donated to charity or sold. Things that are not accessible to be used will just end up being moved from place to place, and, as such will end up being classed as clutter. 

Utilize Storage Solutions

There are lots of solutions that you can introduce into any space to ensure you get the most out of any area, no matter how small or awkward it is. There are lots of helpful guides online and lots of top tips as to how to store totes on garage ceiling which are helpful and will ensure you get the right products to maximize the amount you can store even in your garage. When you utilize storage solutions you ensure that you don’t waste any valuable space. It is important to remember that items that have been specifically created to be used as storage will always be more useful than items you have just picked up to use as storage.

Utilize Wall Space

More often than not and storage you have on your walls is not fit for purpose. You need to ensure that you utilize any available wall space you have and this includes having hanging brackets and racks that can be folded to conceal the contents. Shelves are OK but if you are not utilizing all of the shelves then they are a waste of space. So look at your walls and think about what you need to store on them. For example yard brushes, paint rollers, paintbrushes and gardening tools. Slim items are ideal to put on walls as they can be hung and in the process, you will not lose valuable space.

Never Underestimate The Importance Of Decluttering

Part of successful organizing is about keeping only what you need and decluttering regularly. Clutter quickly builds up and if you don’t get hold of the situation then it will take hold of you. So, it is important to remember that decluttering and organizing go hand in hand. Declutter as you go, and try to have a good decluttering session at least once a month. Remember that if you haven’t used it and you don’t know what or when you will use it, then it is probably best to get rid of it – whatever it is!

Remember To Label Everything

The importance of labelling cannot be stressed enough. You may think you will remember what is in the 12 identical boxes just from looking at them but you won’t, and most importantly you will waste time and effort going through everything you have just to find the one thing you are looking for. So, save time, stress and hassle and label everything you are putting away. Keep an itinerary or checklist as you are going along and include this in each box that you fill. It may be trivial to do at first but you will appreciate your lists and labeling when you come to find that one little socket that is hidden within a box that 

Keep Items Off The Floor

This is very important as things that are on the floor are more likely to get damaged quickly. Never store loose items on the floor as this is simply asking for trouble. If you have to use the floor for storage then make sure everything is adequately boxed up and protected and do not stack things on top of other things that are on the floor. Items that are on the floor are trip hazards, and if you have stacked lots of items on top of each other from the floor up, it is more that you have to move when you want to access anything that is kept behind the tower of boxes you have built up.

Keep It Functional

Functional spaces are a must. Filling every space within an area is not going to work in the short term, or long term. Your space needs to be functional and usable. Before you even begin organizing any room you need to think about how you will use the room and what function or purpose it will serve. When you know how space will be used then you can plan your storage and organizational items around the furniture or items included within your space. When spaces are functional and organized they are easier to maintain so ensure that every space within your home has a function or use. If rooms have no clear purpose or use then they will become dumping grounds very quickly which is what you want to avoid as rooms that are used as dumping grounds can get neglected, and eventually lead to bigger problems such as bug infestations or fire hazards.

Essentially to get to grips with organizing you need to take a practical and methodical approach to everything you are doing. It can be overwhelming trying to organize every item you have at once, so think of organizing as an ongoing job and process, this way you will enjoy the process and not end up dreading it.