When the last of your brood departs for the next stage in their life, you, as a newly minted empty nester, are left to reflect on the stage that's just come to a close. Certainly, you'll face a range of emotions. But more than anything else, you might find yourself overwhelmed with dread and confusion about how on earth you managed to accumulate so much stuff.
When you half-heartedly begin sorting through all that stuff, you get hit with another, even more unsettling, truth—a lot of that stuff belongs to you and not, as you once suspected, your children.
Trust me, all of us empty nesters have been in your shoes. But instead of curating the museum of “things I don't need,” allow your decluttering to take a more meaningful and practical approach. An effort made on your terms and timeframe and reshaping your space to reflect your life now and what you hope it will be in the future.
Together with my decluttering tips for empty nesters, let's transform your beautiful home into a sanctuary of elegance and charm, readying you for your next magnificent chapter.
Set your goals and establish a vision
It may be a bit cliche, but setting guidelines and goals for recapturing your home's space is a critical first step to realizing its full potential. Think of the decluttering process not as throwing out or getting rid of stuff you don't need (even though this is what you are doing) but more about reshaping your property for the future –– creating areas for guests to visit and stay, carving out rooms or alcoves to pursue your interests or hobbies, or setting the stage to ultimately sell your home and downsize with confidence.
Even if your plans change, establishing guiding principles will help keep your decluttering efforts on track so you can enjoy your reclaimed spaces and sanity much sooner.
Cherish the gems, release the rest
Marie Kondo was definitely on to something with her book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, the Netflix series it spawned, and the idea of keeping things that "spark joy" in your life. Although 100% commitment to such advice may be impractical for some, the idea behind it can help spur your decluttering efforts.
Item by item, hold each object and ask if it's a true gem or keepsake, a vital part of your daily life, something that's just taking up space without offering any intrinsic value. Sentiment is highly valuable, and you should not dismiss those items that are indeed valuable to you and your life. But if you want to experience the serenity of a clutter-free environment, it's worth exploring what truly matters now versus the items in your home whose time has come and gone.
The art of organization
Organization should be invisible yet intuitive in a luxury home. Custom built-ins, designer baskets, and bespoke storage solutions are your allies, performing thankless tasks as if a silent butler keeping you and your life on point. Of course, employing a system of organizational bliss is another matter and may require additional planning and some financial investment.
Foremost, consider areas of the home where added organization makes the most sense or directly fulfills a longtime need. Utility rooms, bathrooms, and closets are always prime spaces for built-in organization, but so are lofts, living areas, kitchens, and dining spaces where designer shelving or custom built-ins can expand usable space while adding aesthetic appeal. In addition, if you have plans to eventually sell, home buyers are always seeking out Westchester homes for sale featuring extra storage.
A quick path to downsizing — digitize and donation
We live in a marvelous age where some of our most cherished keepsakes are easily preserved in perpetuity while others can happily find a home with someone else once their usefulness in ours has run its course. Here, I'm combining the unrelated acts of digitizing and donation because they can help you quickly remove clutter from your home.
The first step is saving photographs, records, and even the kids' art projects digitally, all of which take up valuable nooks of space and can physically deteriorate over time without proper preservation. Creating a digital library keeps your memories intact, reduces clutter, and provides an easy-to-access collection that you can choose to create physical versions of what's most important to you.
The second step is realizing that some of what you once favored or thought of as worth holding onto no longer carries the same level of significance. But that doesn't mean someone else can't attach their own value to it. From collectors to fashionistas to those in need, consignment and donation give your belongings a second life and free up space for you to forge a new one.
Editing your closet
Unlike other general household items, two things in your house warrant genuine curation: specific collections that serve as hobbies or investments, such as art –– and your personal wardrobe.
It may be the hardest step of all, but it's time for those pieces that haven't seen the light of day in seasons or those purchased on a whim that still have decades-old price tags attached to them to take their final bow. Keep the timeless, the flattering, and the exquisite; let go of the rest.
The one-year rule
Finally, I've saved the simplest decluttering tip for last. If the decision-making process proves overwhelming, take all of the items you've been unsure about parting ways with, box them, label them, and store them away for six months up to a year. Then, set yourself a reminder to open the box on the predetermined date. If, in that timeframe, you were not in any way compelled to hunt for, pull out, or have use for a given item, it's time to say adios.
Now that you have a clear picture, let Hope take the reigns:
Hope Mazzola, your local Northern Westchester real estate expert will help you put the finishing touches on getting your home ready for sale. A professional staging consult (part of her services), will help with optimal furniture and decor placement, showcasing the best features and making buyers feel like this could be their next home.
Hope Mazzola is a master at guiding sellers through the entire process - from the initial thoughts about downsizing through the decluttering (with names of places who sell and/or pick up donations) and on the actual sale process or pricing, marketing and negotiation. Selling real estate takes exceptional marketing, constant research and a proven system to help sellers sell for the highest possible price with the least inconvenience. Hope has dedicated the past 22 years to knowing the real estate industry inside and out and the 20 years prior to that honing her craft in a successful advertising career. Hope’s savvy marketing is unique, creative and effective, which is part of the reason for her award-winning success.
Hope has mastered the role of trusted advisor and provides real estate services to her clients in all parts of the world and at all price points. She’s connected, respected and working harder than ever to ensure successful real estate experiences for her clients.
Still thinking about whether this is the right move for you? Not quite ready to buy or sell, but curious about options, questions about the process, or the current real estate “buzz”? Don’t be shy, reach out to Hope at [email protected], 914-714-0090 or @UGottaHaveHope. You can also sign up for the Local Housing Newsletter on her website.
When it comes to real estate - #UGottaHaveHope!
