When clutter starts building up around the house, knowing where to begin can be difficult. A checklist to help declutter your home breaks the job into smaller sections, making it easier to tackle one area without creating even more chaos.
You don’t need to declutter your home and your life in a day. Work through the checklist at your own pace, get rid of what you no longer use and organise what stays.
Where do I start decluttering my home? – By Experienced Household Clearance Team
If you are unsure how to start decluttering, choose somewhere small.
One shelf, a kitchen drawer or part of the bathroom is enough to get started without adding to the overwhelm.
Grab a few bags or boxes for anything you plan to donate, recycle or discard. Sorting as you go prevents unwanted belongings from becoming another pile that sits in the hallway afterwards.
A room that is full of stuff can feel much harder to tackle.
Break it into bite-sized chunks and finish one area before moving on.
This can reduce stress and stop you getting overwhelmed by the amount still left to do, especially if you are dealing with a hoarding situation or helping a hoarder declutter their home.
You can even set a short timer if that helps you focus. The aim is not speed but to keep the decluttering manageable enough that you actually finish the area you started.
Declutter your home checklist for house clearances
Use this declutter your home checklist as a room-by-room guide rather than trying to clear the whole house at once.
The order does not matter, so start with whichever room feels easiest to tackle.
Kitchen and bathroom
Start clearing the kitchen by checking cupboards for expired food and ingredients you know you won’t use. Go through each drawer and remove broken utensils, duplicates and other clutter that has accumulated over time.
If you have a junk drawer, empty out anything you no longer need and organise what is worth keeping.
Appliances you rarely use may also be taking up valuable worktop or storage space, so decide whether they are worth keeping before putting everything back.
In the bathroom, get rid of toiletries that have expired, empty packaging and products you don’t use anymore.
Clear each shelf and cupboard, then organise what remains so the things you use regularly are easy to reach.
Keeping these spaces decluttered makes them easier to tidy and more functional day-to-day.
Living room and bedroom
Living room clutter often builds slowly.
Paperwork, magazines, cables, decorations and unused furniture can gradually make the room feel messy or chaotic.
Check shelves and storage areas and decide what still belongs there. If something has not been used for a long time, ask whether you genuinely need to keep it.
In the bedroom, go through clothes and shoes you no longer wear.
Set aside anything that doesn’t fit, is damaged or has been sitting untouched for a long time.
Donate anything that is still in good condition to a charity shop and get rid of damaged items you know you won’t use again.
Check bedside drawers, under-bed storage and other areas where belongings tend to collect.
Clearing these spaces can make the bedroom easier to organise, especially if you plan to decorate or rearrange the room afterwards.
Home office and other storage areas
A home office can quickly become a holding place for paperwork, unused stationery and old electronics.
Recycle documents you no longer need and organise important paperwork so it is easier to find.
Children’s bedrooms and playrooms can quickly end up with too much stuff, especially toys, books and clothes they have outgrown.
Next, tackle the hallway, spare room, loft or garage.
These areas often end up storing things you haven’t seen or used for months because they can be pushed out of sight.
Clearing them in smaller sections is usually easier than moving clutter from one room to another.
Once an area has been decluttered, try to keep it that way.
A little ongoing maintenance makes keeping your home clutter-free much easier than having to repeat a large clear-out later.
What should you do with everything you clear out?
Decluttering your home is only useful if the things you remove actually leave the property.
Donate usable belongings to a charity shop, recycle what you can and discard anything that cannot be reused safely.
If you plan to sell something, give yourself a realistic deadline rather than allowing a “sell later” pile to turn back into clutter.
For extra peace of mind after the decluttering is finished, you can also prepare for junk removal before hiring a service. Take this process one step at a time.
Decluttering left you with too much to move? Talk to Junk-It today
If your clear-out has left you with bulky furniture, bags, boxes or other household items that are difficult to remove yourself, Junk-It can take care of the heavy lifting.
Tell us what needs to go and we’ll quote for the job, collect and load the items, then sweep up before we leave.
Call us on 0131 228 3848 for a free quote with no obligation.
