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 Tips for a downsizing declutter

 

If it’s time to downsize, there’s likely to be a lifetime’s worth of clutter to deal with. The secret to downsizing is ridding yourself of all those things you no longer need, while recognising the things you need to or want to keep. Sounds easy, right? Not so. It’s takes time and a lot of organisation. Here are some helpful tips:

  • Start with the big stuff

When downsizing to a property with less space and less bedrooms, for example, you know you’re not going to need those extra wardrobes and beds for starters. These items are bulkier and harder to move and unless you want to pay out for storage, there’s no reason to keep hold of them. Check the floor plan and measurements of your new space, so you can get a good idea of whether there is space for sofas, tables and chairs, for example. Make these big decisions before you move so you won’t have to fork out extra for haulage or storage.

  • Go through every box

Most of us have boxes of stuff that follow us everywhere but we really have no idea what’s inside them. Keepsakes, photo albums, old clothes and scrapbooks, for example. Spend some time to go through everything. Do you really need those drawings you did as a child? You’ll be surprised at how much you can whittle down when you decide to only keep those things that you’d be heartbroken never to see again. Decluttering is a must for downsizing to a park home. For more information on Bedfordshire Park Homes For Sale, visit a site like http://www.parkhomelife.com/our-parks/pine-view-park/

  • Consider the 12 months rule

We all have things we love but never use or things that we think might come in handy one day. However, if you haven’t made good use of an item for more than a year, it’s probably time to let it go. Also, if you don’t think it’s likely the item will be used in the next 12 months, then definitely let it go. The important thing is to be realistic. It’s fine to keep hold of things if you genuinely think you’ll need them in the near future.

  • What would you save in a fire?

It’s all just ‘stuff’ at the end of the day, but before going crazy with the decluttering and becoming a complete minimalist, think about things you would save in the event of a fire. Might this be a favourite book, a photo album, a family heirloom or a special piece of jewellery? Not all ‘stuff’ is expendable, so don’t be tempted to get rid of anything you will regret.

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  • Digitize to make more space

Items like CDs, cassettes, DVDs and videos can all be digitized and saved to the cloud or a PC hard drive, meaning a place doesn’t need to be found for storing them all. It is also possible to scan documents, financial and personal to rid yourself of boxes of paperwork. Hard copies of some documents should be kept, such as birth certificates and passports but the majority of paperwork can be scanned, saved as a PDF file and uploaded to a cloud service.