I will be honest with you…1/2 of my family are what could be considered “hoarders”. It’s not the half that I fall into, as I truly believe in getting rid of clutter, but that side of my family has been saving and keeping “stuff” for multiple generations. When my grandmother on that side died years ago, she left behind a 4 story condo that didn’t have a square inch of space without something in it. And no matter how many times I have tried to encourage/help/berate them into getting rid of the clutter, it never sticks – more of it always shows up.
photo credit: Joe ShlabotnikI have written before about how I think paying for self-storage is a waste of money, and I stand by my beliefs even in the face of family scorn. However, it seems like maybe my constant talk of clutter and wasted money has paid off, as a member of my family I am very close to has finally, after many, many years, gotten rid of her $200 a month storage facility she was paying for. I couldn’t be happier than if I had done it myself
See, she was paying for storage because her garage was full to the brim with stuff that she “couldn’t bear to get rid of”. But upon finally get fed up with the amount of stuff and the fact that $200 a month would go a long way to helping with her finances, she decided to tackle all that crap she supposedly couldn’t live without. Turns out that she could, as her garage was emptied out in one short day of recycling, donating, and throwing away. After clearing out all the stuff that she once thought she needed, she was left with an empty garage – with enough room in it to move everything from her $200/month storage space. That’s an instant savings of $2,400 a year, and she didn’t even really know what was in there anymore because it had been so long since she had seen it! Now that it’s back at her own house, she is about to start Round Two – going through all of this to get rid of even more. This is groundbreaking news for this particular person, and I could not be happier about this change! If she can do it, so can you – so never say never. Trust me on this one.
Next up for this side of the family? Me heading back east to work on Mom’s house. I am going to spend some time this summer there doing some decluttering and cleaning out, and to make things easier for the throw-away stuff we are renting a dumpster to sit in the driveway. That should speed things up a little bit. Good thing I truly enjoy doing it. And good thing that 50% of my genes are predisposed to being clutter-free and organized!
The lesson here? Anyone and everyone CAN get rid of clutter and stop paying for storage. If this family member can not only clean out a garage full of who-knows-what, get rid of the storage space, and then attempt to get rid of said stuff from the storage space, every single person can do it. So get to it!
Maybe you’ve “infected” your family with the decluttering bug. I had an uncle who couldn’t pass up a free bargain. He would wander the streets in his neighborhood, and bring home all kinds of half-broken things, much to my aunt’s chagrin. After he passed away, my cousin cleaned all of this accumulated junk out of the garage, which they now rent out to a guy with an antique car. Their decluttering exercise ended up generating a monthly cash flow!
I sure hope so Enrique! That sounds like a nice cash flow business to get into!
The decluttering bug is definately contagious. Now that I’m almost done with my STUFF, the family whose house I live in is wanting help doing the exact same thing with all their accumulated STUFF. Luckily, having moved a mere 3 years ago, there isn’t so much as to require a storage unit, it’s all ‘in-house’…literally. In the garage, the basement shop, the closets, the upstairs ‘nook’, etc…etc…etc…ad nauseum.
First up, this weekend we tackle and hopefully finish the garage…
Good advice and nice story. We have been decluttering our house for years now. It’s been a long and slow process (and sometimes a little difficult) but well worth it. We got tired of the draining effect of looking at piles of stuff we knew we really didn’t need was our motivation. But getting some money at garage sales helped too.
you know what I love …. I have saved a few bits and bobs from my childhood … and now my lads are playing with them and wearing them out !! This is a great way to declutter.
Also ebay is a huge bonus for the declutter bug – I have moved things on from my childhood and some even from my mum’s childhood thru ebay. The sense that things have gone to a new owner to be appreciated and loved all over again is just fab – cheers le