Moving is stressful for many people, but downsizing your house is a great way to save money and/or invest it into something else. Here are 5 tips for downsizing your house in San Francisco.
Use a Tape Measure
The first tip to downsizing your house is to make sure the furniture you want to keep will fit properly into your new digs. You also need to make sure the furniture will fit through the door and navigate any hallways or corners you may encounter on the way to its new home. It would be terrible to take the time and effort to move a large sectional couch into your new house and come to find out that it is ridiculously oversized for the new space.
Get Rid of Duplicates
Another tip for downsizing your house in San Francisco would be to organize all of your belongings with like things. Gathering similar or related objects will help you determine if you have an overabundance of objects like kitchen utensils or extension cords. Don’t be too hasty; if you are known for your annual light display, maybe you do need 12 extension cords. Make sure you keep objects you will use in the near future. Don’t hang on to things you don’t need. If you are going through an extreme downsize, you will also have to try to get rid of less sentimental objects than some of your extremely sentimental objects. Consider taking pictures of some of the less sentimental items and keeping them in a special album, that way you will still have the memories without the physical objects.
Sell Your Stuff
Moving costs money. Selling your unnecessary items will be a great way to drum up some extra funds for the move, or maybe some new landscaping, fresh paint, or other decorative elements. You could hold a garage sale to make some extra money or consider selling online bulletin boards. You will want to start selling things early, finding buyers for specialty items may take some time, especially if you are listing your items one by one. A yard sale is a great way to sell your stuff a little faster. You can also advertise your yard sale on the online bulletin boards too. This will open up your potential customers well beyond your neighbors.
Give Your Stuff Away
The fastest way to get rid of extra stuff is to give it away! You have multiple options on how to give your stuff away. You could simply chuck it to the curb. This might be the best solution for some older and worn-out stuff. You could also put usable items at the curb with a sign that reads “free stuff.” You can also post a curb alert to the online bulletin board. You could also donate the items to your local thrift stores and help out a great cause. Giving the items away means they disappear instantly and you don’t have to store them or try to barter with anyone about pricing. It is also a very freeing feeling.
Fill Your New Space
If you can, it would be advisable to have some overlapping time between your current house and your new house. You can make some trips over to the new house with items you are for sure keeping. Make sure they all fit in their intended homes, and fill out the closets and garage. Take measurements of your new space and current furniture to make sure it fits before getting rid of it or purchasing new furniture that doesn’t fit. This will be the best way to make sure extra stuff doesn’t get to the new house.