70 Things To Get Rid Of Before Moving House

The process of buying a house can be quite exciting, the moving part, not so much. The thought of moving all of your belongings which you’ve accumulated over a few years, or even a decade, can be anxiety-inducing.

As an experienced Brisbane removalist, I have completed plenty of big moves and one of my top tips to make your moving experience less painful and more efficient is to substantially cull your belongings, in the months leading up to your move.

If you’re not akin to decluttering and getting rid of things, or wouldn’t know where to start, here’s a list you might like to follow.

Things to get rid of before moving house

Your Kitchen

• Appliances you haven’t used in the past six months
• Mismatched cutlery
• Odd bowls and plates
• Kitchen utensils you haven’t used in the past six months
• Excess coffee mugs
• Old recipe books
• Excess water bottles
• Expired condiments like herbs, spices and sauces
• Old saucepans and fry pans

In the months leading up to your move, create boxes for your kitchen items. As you use the items, place them in their respective box. After a month you will have a good idea of the items you don’t use because they won’t be in the box.

Your Garage

• Old tools
• Old paint (make sure you contact your local council to find out how to best dispose of paint)
• Old batteries and power tools that don’t work
• Excess camping gear like Eskies and chairs
• The old mower you’ve kept for parts
• Old plant pots
• Old pieces of timber and other materials from your renovations
• Your deep freezer you don’t use
• Your old bar fridge
• Old furniture
• Any broken items that have been sitting in your garage, waiting to be fixed.
• Bicycles that haven’t been ridden in ages
• Gym equipment like a treadmill or weights that you haven’t used in months.

Outside

• Tired or damaged outdoor furniture settings
• Old barbecues
• Excess garden hoses
• Kids toys
• A swing set that your kids hardly use
• The trampoline that’s too big for your new place or that your kids don’t use

Your Bathroom

• Expired makeup
• Expired moisturisers and other beauty products
• Samples you still haven’t used and toiletry minis you’ve collected from hotels
• Old shower curtains
• Old medicines that have expired.
• Old appliances that you don’t use like curlers, straighteners or hair dryers.

The Linen Cupboard

• Old towels
• Old sheets
• Old quilt covers you don’t use
• Excess blankets and quilts
• Old pillows
• Board games
• Wrapping paper & old cards

Old towels, sheets and blankets may seem tired to you, but there are plenty of charity organisations that seek donations of these items.

The home office

• Paperwork that’s older than five years. If it’s sensitive, shred it.
• Books you haven’t read and are unlikely to read
• Old folders
• Pens and pencils
• Notebooks
• Old printers
• Old headphones, cords and plugs that you no longer need. You know, that box of random cords everyone has?

Your bedroom

• Cull your wardrobe
• Old jewellery
• Old ties
• Clothes that no longer fit
• Old shoes
• Accessories like scarves, hats and handbags

Your lounge room

• Old DVD’s
• Old music CD’s
• Old Playstation/Xbox games
• Books
• Lamps
• Kids toys
• Old furniture that you’re looking to replace
• Appliances like TV’s or Stereos if you have more than you need

Other space eating items to consider purging

• Old mattresses
• Old baby furniture your child has grown out of
• Baby Prams or strollers
• Old school books
• Kids artwork (keep the artwork that holds special meaning or represents a milestone. Alternatively, take photos of the artwork and create a slideshow.)
• Old rugs
• Old Christmas decorations
• Excess bags – tote bags, backpacks, duffle bags.

This big pre-move purge isn’t just great for reducing the number of things you have to pack, move and unpack, you’ll move into your new place feeling lighter and decluttered. It’s also a great opportunity to give back to the community through donations and you’re likely to make a bit of money by selling items online, perfect to put towards the new lounge you’ve been eyeing off. It’s definitely a win-win.

David Extra is the owner of Xtra Care Removalists Brisbane and strives to make every home and office move easy and stress-free for his clients. Xtra Care Removalists service the Greater Brisbane area including Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Toowoomba.