The first call: The lady had died 18 months prior and the family, who lived 300 miles away, had devoted one weekend per month to “emptying the house”. They would drive the 600 miles round trip and spend the weekend hauling stuff to the dump. Finally, as it was the second spring the house had sat empty, they decided they needed to get it on the market. The realtor told them about my services, so they asked me to come take a look. All that remained were a few large pieces of furniture (too heavy for them to lift), a bunch of “garage stuff” (they hadn’t finished there) and two garbage cans in front of the garage doors. The most valuable items (worth more than the furniture) were in the garbage cans!
The second call: The family had moved their mother into a retirement home close to where they live, again about 300 miles away. They (the brother and sister) had then each taken time off from work and spent several days filling dumpsters and hauling stuff to charity. When they listed the house the realtor referred them to me. All that remained were a few large pieces of furniture (too heavy for them to lift), some exercise equipment and a bunch of “garage stuff” (they hadn’t finished there).
The third call: The parents had moved out of state three years prior. The house was left unoccupied for three years, during which time it was damaged by water and mice. The brother and sister then each took over two weeks off of work, traveled from out of state and spend their time “emptying the house” (hauling stuff to the dump and charity). When they listed the house the realtor referred them to me. All that remained was a bunch of old paint and pesticides that they had been unsure as to how to dispose of and some yard tools.
Postscript: Sound repetitious? Welcome to my life!!! In all three cases, the family could have saved their time and energy (and made money), by just taking what they wanted and having a professional service deal with the remaining items. Each year I get many similar calls. In every case the people have spent their time, energy and money throwing away items of value. These same people hire doctors, lawyers, accountants, mechanics, realtors, and many other types of professionals as needed, but never considered looking for a professional to assist them with disposing of personal property….