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I Inherited a Hoarder House — What Should I Do With All the Stuff?

Inheriting a home comes with a great deal of responsibility, especially if that house belonged to a hoarder. Now, on top of deciding if you will keep or sell the house, you need to devise a plan for all the stuff covering every surface. It can be tempting to hire a junk removal company and wipe your hands clean of the mess. However, doing so could mean you are missing out on the opportunity to find valuable items and hold an estate auction in Central New Jersey.

Before you kick everything in the hoarder home to the curb, consider carefully combing through the items to find valuables that could significantly improve your financial situation. Follow these tips when you find yourself in the position of dealing with a hoarder’s stuff:

Look for Instructions in a Will

Before moving items or making plans to sell the hoarder house, check your loved one’s will for any specific instructions. The deceased may have stated where they would like particular items to go. If there aren’t any instructions, you can see if your family members have specific requests.

Get Rid of Junk First

Cleaning a hoarder house can be overwhelming — there are magazines, paperwork, old clothes, jewelry, boxes, and knick-knacks everywhere. The best way to begin the process of decluttering the space is to get rid of garbage first. This often includes junk mail, food in the pantry, and old grocery bags.

Keep an Eye Out for Valuables in Unlikely Places

Once the space has been cleared of obvious junk, you can begin to sort through items in search of valuables. Make sure you look in unusual places. First-edition books have been found in the backs of closets under blankets, and rare gems have been found in the pockets of garments or wrapped in tissues. You may even discover jewelry in the freezer!

As soon as you spot items that are potentially worth something, place them somewhere where they are secure. In this way, you can later determine their value and potentially sell them during a rare items auction.

Only Keep a Few Items

As you go through your loved one’s stuff, you may learn a lot about the person your aunt, uncle, grandma, or grandpa was before they passed away. You may feel guilty about getting rid of the things they saw as important, but you must realize a few things. First, by selling their stuff by an auction house, you are not forgetting them. Keep only one or two things with sentimental value, and let their memories live on in your heart. Secondly, when you sell their items, you ensure their life continues to touch the lives of others. Professional teams like ours will place the items into the hands of collectors who will appreciate the collection your loved one worked so hard on.

Get Help Documenting Valuables and Determining Their Value

After getting rid of obvious junk and setting aside possessions you want to keep, call in a professional from a local auction house like Bodnar’s Auction. When you have a professional in the industry sort through items, you guarantee you don’t miss a single valuable item. All too often, people mistakenly throw away things of value and try to sell belongings that actually carry very little worth. Having an auctioneer value your items is also more convenient and affordable than hiring an appraiser or trying to document the items yourself. Our professionals will provide a free evaluation and consultation, so you can feel confident in the advice you receive.

Sell the Valuable Items Found in a Hoarder House

After having the items found in your inherited house evaluated, it’s time to decide what you will do with these valuables. One option is to keep them for their sentimental value; however, you may not have the space to store a comic book collection or antique furniture. In this case, selling your items to an auction house in New Jersey may be better.

At Bodnar’s Auction, we host auctions every other week containing all aspects of quality personal property, estate auctions, toy collections, fine art, jewelry, and comic book collections, to name a few. No matter the items you discover in your inherited home, our professionals can help you get your loved one’s hoarding situation under control. Contact us today for more information about our upcoming auctions.

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I’m happy with everything Joe and Janet did, you were both informative and were very helpful with the questions I had being that I was never in that position before. Janet’s response time was also positive for me. It was interesting to watch the auction live. I thought you did an amazing job and had a nice banter back and forth. You seem to be a good team! Thank you for all your hard work and making this difficult time of letting  my deceased father’s collectibles go an easy experience.

Kim F.

I would like to thank you for including me in your online sale.
Everything from none contact drop off, to none contact pick up, was handled with the outmost professionalism.
I appreciated your clear communication after the sale with a printout and an explanation of when I’ll receive my check.
Overall I was very please with the prices my jewelry achieved, some lot  went for less then I expected, others went for more, it’s all in the average.

Thank you very much

Michal F.

I come to your auctions often. You and your staff are great. Your change to an online auction on 4/9 is just another testament to your fine character and being thoughtful of others. The items are great no doubt, but a big reason I keep coming back is due to the culture you have created. Thank you. Art

Art F.

Thank You Joe! We Had a Very Good Experience With Your Team! 8/15/19

Carry G.

Sold in July 18, 2019 sale and Overall Pleased!

Frank D.

I received the proceeds from the Auction and wanted to again thank you and your team.  Everything went so smoothly and you all did such a great job from start to finish.This was an overwhelming experience for me and you made everything so easy.  I have been recommending you to everyone!

Thank you again for helping me; your kindness was very much appreciated.

Debbie B

Five Stars!

Samuel P.

Great deals and great company

Armand P.

Love this service! Great deals if you know what to look for!

Anthony D.

As I said once before, Wonderful People Work here. Thanks too all for your constant help. One Huge Look Auction!

Michael L.

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