Downsizing is a daunting task, but also something worth CELEBRATING. There is something very special about reaching the age where your space gets smaller because you’re prioritizing what matters most in life! We want you to be able to enjoy this as much as possible and keep the process simple. To take away some of the anxiety that comes with such a big lifestyle change, follow our expert advice about what to keep, donate, and sell when downsizing.

The first step of downsizing is setting a goal. To best prepare for downsizing, determine how much space you will have in your new place and decide what kind of lifestyle you want to have. With your goals in mind, you can then begin to purge. Work in small zones and don’t try to do everything all at one time! Start with one drawer/shelf/section of the closet and go from there. This helps you avoid burning out or feeling overwhelmed. Completing small zones also brings a feeling of accomplishment and will give you motivation + momentum to keep going!

Begin with a structured “sort and purge”. If you’ll be moving to a smaller space, the more useful a single item, the better! Identify any multi-use/multi-purpose items (such as furniture with storage compartments) you have.

Label four bins: Keep, Donate, Sell, & Trash/Recycle. You may also include a bin for “Determine Later” items. When sorting your belongings, only allow yourself 30 seconds to a minute to decide which bin each item will go in. If you can’t decide in your set time, throw it in the “TBDL” bin and go back to it later. Set limits for each category as you sort/determine. For example,

• Clothes – “I can keep one closet’s worth”
• Kitchen – “I’ll have one drawer per type of tool”
• Books – “I will keep enough to fill the one shelf I’ll move to the new place”

Limits will help prevent clutter from returning. Approaching your purge this way also ensures you don’t bring too much with you, only to have to sort/purge again later.

You want to set (and stick to!) strict limits when purging for a downsize. Keep your lifestyle goals in mind and keep:

• Items you use often (within the last 6-12 months)
• Hard to replace items
• Expensive items
• Sentimental items (if possible, limit this to only items that fit within a small box)
• Items that have multiple uses/functions
• Items such as daily cookware, clothing worn often, essential documents, and tools you will actually use

You should donate any items that are still in good working condition but are no longer useful to you (and not worth the effort to sell). A good rule-of-thumb is if something can be replaced for under $20 in less than 20 minutes, you probably don’t need to keep it.

Donating items often feels more rewarding and is emotionally easier because you know someone else will benefit from having the item. When downsizing to a smaller space, it’s time to part with “doubles” and any “surplus” items. Did you know most people only use 20-30% of their kitchen items regularly? Keep your most used and donate any that haven’t been used in the past year. Closets are also hotspots for unused items that do nothing but take up space. (In fact, closets often remain overstuffed even after a downsize!) We recommend taking 30 seconds to 1 minute and choosing to donate the following:

• Your duplicates (dining sets, pots & pans, utensils, little black dresses, etc.)
• Items you haven’t used in a year (large serving platters, bread maker, etc.)
• Any items you won’t have space for (that aren’t valuable enough to sell)
• Hobby items unused for 1-2 years (instruments, craft supplies, sports gear, etc.)
• Items you no longer need that are still in good shape
  • Clothing
  • Books
  • Small appliances
  • Kitchenware/bakeware
  • Toys
  • Furniture

If it’s gotta go, but could still be useful to someone else? Give it a second life and donate it!

Your biggest deciding factor in what to sell/what to donate should come down to your time & effort + item value. If an item won’t sell for more than $20-30, it’s usually more worthwhile to simply donate it. We recommend the following as generally “worth your effort” items to sell:

• High-value items
• Items that are in high demand and will sell quickly
• Anything easy to photograph, list online, and ship
• Collectible items
• Quality, great condition pieces of furniture
• Electronics (be sure to wipe clean & reset computers, tablets, etc. before selling!)
• Designer/high-end clothing
• Power tools

We can tell you that clients often regret holding onto boxes of outdated tech. Items such as phones, broken laptops, outdated cameras, old printers/monitors, etc. are best sold rather than stored indefinitely while their value diminishes. The same can be said for “special occasion outfits”. These pieces that were either never worn or worn once (1+ years ago) should be gotten rid of.

Places you can try to sell items include consignment shops or online platforms. Consignment shops are far less work for you, but there are also conveniences to using an online platform such as Facebook Marketplace, Poshmark, Mercari, or eBay.

We get it; sentimental items are the hardest to purge. But we have several great strategies to help you downsize the sentimental stuff, while still holding onto the memories. The most common regret our clients have is keeping too much (for too long)! Having every child’s school project, old greeting cards, childhood toys, and other random memorabilia stored in boxes you never go through isn’t productive or logical.

The biggest piece of advice we have when it comes to sentimental items is to limit yourself to ONE small container per category. Giving yourself this limit (and sticking to it) encourages you to only hold onto the items that are truly meaningful. You can create memory boxes for yourself or even use a service such as EverPresent to create more accessible sentimental storage. Our favorite tip? Keep the very best of what you have and photograph the sentimental items you decide to let go of. Is it important to have your forty-seven-year-old son’s favorite toddler tee sitting in a box inside a closet? Could it be equally sentimental to have him hold it up for a “Then & Now” photo you place in an album next to a childhood photo of him in the same tee? Pictures take up little space and can be organized easily so they are the best way to downsize stuff without losing all sentiment and memory along with the items.

When it comes to deciding which furniture will make the move with you, a good first step is measuring your new space. Keep any furniture you love that:

• Fits the new layout
• Has multiple uses or serves multiple purposes
• Is comfortable & used often

Get rid of any items that don’t really serve a purpose, i.e., oversized couches, duplicate tables, extra dining chairs, decorative furniture, etc. Large or extra furniture pieces often become a burden in a smaller space/home and instantly create a cluttered feeling. Another downsizing hot topic item is guest bedroom furniture. Usually, guest bedroom furniture is only used once a year, so if you don’t have guests that stay regularly, you might consider letting go of all of it.

The TLDR is this: If you’re unsure about something while purging, ask yourself, “if this item were to disappear tomorrow…would I replace it?”

• If the answer is “ yes” = Keep it!
• If the answer is “maybe” = Consider donating it.
• If the answer is “no” = Let it go!

Again, ALWAYS have your goal in the back of your mind as you purge. The peace you’ll soon be feeling in your clutter-free downsized space will be worth every bit of this difficult process. Stick to your limits. Be logical. If a box has been packed up and stored for years, the contents are likely not important or relevant anymore (especially if you don’t remember what was put in there!) We have tips for navigating family dynamics during downsizing and more tips to ease downsizing stress on our blog, but if the overwhelm, stress, or guilt becomes too much, don’t be afraid to ask for professional help! Please get in touch, and we’ll help make the “keep”, “donate”, or “sell” decisions as easy as 1, 2, 3!

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Tonia