We Have To Have An Estate Sale, Now What?
Overwhelmed is an understatement that comes to mind when I meet with families that are looking to have an estate sale. Very often it’s the children, grown maneuvering through their own lives, and then the family wrench is thrown into the picture. Parents facing moves to assisted living, moving to be closer to their children, or perhaps facing the finality of a parent’s death and preparing the home and contents for sale.
An estate sale for many people can be a great experience or a terrible one. This is a very intimate and personal event, strangers looking through prized possessions and haggling over prices can be downright nauseating for the family.
Done correctly although with the right liquidator, it can be almost freeing. Seeing beloved collectibles or heirloom furniture going to young couples can be thrilling. The start of a new journey, of new life, new love, new stories. And the sustainability is a great plus.
How to Prepare
Search through the home, become aware of what is really in the home, art, jewelry, furnishings, books or other collectibles.
Remove all private or sensitive paperwork, this could mean boxing papers up for later review or shredding it now. Check with your community center and see who in your area may do mass paper shreddings.
Take a photographic inventory, a few photos from each room, this will document the contents and allow you to share the contents as well with family members when making choices on what to keep or what to sell.
Be prepared no matter how prepared you are you probably are not prepared. It will be hard at some point just when is the unknown. Take your time, and be at peace with what ever you decide to do and when. This is your decision not the liquidators or realtors.