Many of us have spent an extended amount of time at a beach or mountain house and some of us have even temporarily moved to other countries that were more safe during the pandemic. As things start to get better in the United States, it's time to pack up and move home allowing that investment or vacation property to once more start generating income.
Living in a house that feels cramped and lacking in space can be a frustrating experience. However, if it is your vacation house that you now need to clean up and get ready to start renting again, it is even more challenging.
If your home is full of stuff you rarely use, now could be the time to reclaim your space and ditch the clutter for good. While one option is to move to a larger home or extend your current house, this won’t be necessary if you manage to get your existing space organized. But, the big question is, how do you get started? Clearing up years' worth of belongings can be an overwhelming task. If you have cupboards with doors bursting open and piles of stuff on the floor, knowing where to begin can be the first challenge to overcome. Here are some to help you get your clutter under control and create more space in your home:
Dealing with Items That Have No Home
Everyone has items in their home that do not belong anywhere. These items are often bulky and take up loads of space despite being used rarely. Maybe you have a bike in your hallway that you rarely ride, or perhaps you collect comic books and have them stacked in boxes. Whatever seldom-used items you have taking up space at home, you may want to move them to a storage facility where they can be kept safe and secure. No matter where in the world you might be, there are storage spaces available. For instance, I know that some of you have been living in Singapore for the past few months (one of the safest places in the world for avoiding COVID!).
Renting a storage unit is an excellent way to clear items out of your home while knowing they are safe and can be accessed whenever you want.
Work in a Logical Order
Trying to declutter parts of every room in the house at once can be a recipe for disaster. Attempting too much at once can damage your motivation and leave you wishing you had never started decluttering. To make life a lot easier for yourself and to see the results faster, it makes sense to focus on one room at a time. If a room is particularly cluttered, you could focus on just one part of the room at a time.
Sorting through items on the floor is an excellent place to start and will make the most noticeable difference. Once you have cleared the things from your floor, you will have more space to work in and less chance of tripping over and hurting yourself.
Working in a logical order from room to room will help you see how much progress you are making and prevent you becoming overwhelmed by your decluttering efforts.
Be Decisive
When it comes to decluttering, the advice is often to be ruthless and make firm decisions about what you will keep and give away. It is crucial to be decisive if you want to get rid of your clutter. Otherwise, you will find that it builds up again very quickly. Sorting every item into a pile to either keep, give to charity, or sell, should help you stay organized. You must stick with selling or donating items quickly. Otherwise, you may find you never get rid of them.
