Property Cleanout in Boise: Do the Estate Sale First?

A lot of my property cleanout jobs around Boise start with a text the Sunday after an estate sale.

By then the house looks about the same every time. The folding tables are still up, there's a recliner nobody wanted, and the garage has a shelf of half-used paint next to a box of old magazines somebody was sure would sell.

The text is usually one photo of what's left and a simple question. Now what?

If you're settling a parent's house in Boise or anywhere else in the Treasure Valley, you've probably wondered which should come first, the estate sale or the property cleanout. I've cleared houses on both sides of that choice, so here's how I'd think it through.

Estate sale first, property cleanout second

For most houses, the sale goes first. It's not even close.

An estate sale company needs a full house to work with. They'll price the dishes, the tools, the dresser in the back bedroom, and plenty of stuff you'd never guess anyone would pay for.

Old Pyrex, hand tools, costume jewelry in a shoebox. People really do line up for that.

If I show up first, a lot of it ends up in my trailer. Some of it would go to donation anyway, but you'd be giving away things a shopper would've paid you for.

Yes, I'd get a bigger job out of it if you skipped the sale. I'd still tell you to hold it.

Heads up: Before sale day, pull out everything the family wants to keep, plus paperwork, photos and anything with account numbers on it. Lock it in one room or take it home. Shoppers assume anything sitting out is for sale, and cleanout day goes a lot easier when the keep pile is already gone.

When skipping the sale makes more sense

Not every house needs an estate sale. Honestly, some don't have enough in them to be worth one.

Estate sale companies work on a cut of what sells, and plenty of them won't take a house unless it'll bring in enough to cover their time. If the furniture's worn, the kitchen is mostly plastic and the garage is mostly boxes, they may pass.

That's not an insult. The math just doesn't work for them.

Timing matters too. Maybe the house is listing in two weeks, or you've only got one long weekend in town before you fly home.

A sale takes time to set up, run and wrap up. The good companies around Boise and Meridian are often booked out, too.

Then there's the house that just got hard to keep up. When stuff is stacked room to room, a sale isn't realistic, and going straight to the cleanout is the faster way through.

You can still sell the few things worth selling on your own. Put the dining set online, let the neighbor buy the riding mower, and have everything else hauled at once.

What happens to the leftovers

This is the part people worry about. Nobody loves picturing Mom's things going straight into a landfill.

Most of it doesn't have to. What's left after a sale is usually a mix of decent furniture that didn't catch anyone's eye, linens and kitchen stuff, and a pile of real junk from the garage and shed.

The usable stuff goes to donation, usually Idaho Youth Ranch or St. Vincent de Paul, depending on what it is. Metal and old appliances get recycled. Whatever's truly broken or worn out goes to the Ada County landfill out at Hidden Hollow.

If the house is over in Nampa or Caldwell, Canyon County has its own landfill. Different drive, same sorting.

One more thing to ask before you sign with a sale company: what happens to whatever doesn't sell? Some companies handle the cleanout as part of the deal.

Others lock up and hand you the keys. Either one's fine, as long as you know which you're getting.

Timing a property cleanout around selling the house

If the house is getting listed, work backward from the day your realtor wants photos.

The order that usually works goes like this. Family takes what they want, the estate sale runs, the cleanout happens right after, then cleaners and small repairs, then photos.

Skip a step and it shows. Pictures of a half-emptied house don't help anybody.

I can usually get to a job within about 48 hours of a text, so there's no need to book a month out. Still, if your sale wraps up on a Sunday, text me a few days before so the haul-out lands early that week.

That way the house isn't sitting there cluttered while the listing date creeps closer.

Seasons play a small part too. Summer sales pull big crowds, but an empty house with the AC off gets hot fast in a Boise July.

Winter sales are slower, and an icy driveway in the North End or up in the Eagle foothills makes carrying a dresser out a little more interesting. Neither one's a dealbreaker. You just plan around it.

What about cost? It comes down to how much is left and how hard it is to get out.

A few rooms of leftovers after a good sale is a very different job than a full house nobody's touched in years. That's one more reason the sale-first order makes sense.

A smaller pile means a smaller bill.

The bottom line

If the house has good stuff in it and you've got a few weeks, hold the estate sale first and book the cleanout for the days right after. If it doesn't, or you're short on time, sell the handful of things worth selling and clear out the rest.

Either way, don't toss anything until someone who knows resale value has walked through.

When you're ready, text a few photos of what's left to (208) 391-0221. I'll send you a price, and most of the time it's gone within a couple of days.