Strategies for elderly who wants to sell (not donate or trash) old stuff
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Anonymous
Anonymous
I have an idea, inspired by the classic DCUM thread: "I have a ton of higher end baby items to sell - how to do this most efficiently?"
(original thread: https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/956840.page) A later poster suggested:
No shade, maybe this could actually work for your mom. You could contact your local actor's union or the drama department at a nearby college/the community theater, and hire a few people to pose as "buyers" who "can't wait to buy all this valuable stuff" and in that way, get it all out of your house. You would, of course, have to provide the $$$, but it would be efficient and it would make her happy. |
Anonymous
| If I could get away with it with my mother I would happily write a check and lie. |
Anonymous
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My dad had to leave his home of 40+ years after he was diagnosed with early stage dementia and we hired an estate company to help clear it out. They divided everything into 3 categories: auction; donate; trash. It was a little painful to see how much went into the dumpster.
OP you have to be prepared that some or most of what your mother considers valuable will be trashed. Do it anyway - believe me, it's much much easier to manage these things when your parent is not in an active crisis. And two elderly people at risk of falling means that there will be an active crisis sooner rather than later. |
Anonymous
| Why wouldn't you donate and trash? So much of it will be nearly impossible to sell. The amount of free time you put into trying to sell it will cost you far more than any money you make. Donate, but don't donate stuff with holes or in terrible condition. |
Anonymous
| Maybe try caring transitions. They will sell what they can and help get rid of the rest. |
Anonymous
That was really such an obnoxious thread. Let's sift through all the doors to find one who is both deserving enough and appropriately grateful for the largesse. Then we can have them praise us item by item as we bring them out on display. It'll be fun! |
Anonymous
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^^all the poors
Not even my phone wanted to write it. 
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Anonymous
This goes really deep for hoarders, though. They are invested heavily in the idea that this stuff has value, and they will be able to take some pride in being savvy and making money from buying low (or not throwing away) and selling for profit. If that's not true, then they were just living surrounded by trash that nobody wants, making roaches and dry rot more likely, and leaving a mess for other people instead of bestowing them with a valuable gift. If that's true, then everyone who criticized them was right. They will die on that hill, PP, because they can't bear it. Hoarding is its own peculiar mental illness with some aspects of OCD, but that's not equivalent. It has elements of what you see with addiction disorders, too. Lack of insight is one of the features, but it's not just a lack -- it's a dogged commitment to resisting the truth as well. Part of the disorder. |
Anonymous
This is a good idea. We had a bunch of stuff from a house we bought (sellers were divorcing and left a lot of stuff behind... tools, books, etc). I found a local couple on eBay's listings that helps get rid of stuff. They took stuff worth selling and either sold it on eBay or had a yard sale, and gave us half the proceeds. I think it was enough for a fancy dinner which was better than $0. |
Anonymous
This is basically junk. Don't bother donating it, or the charity's costs for trash removal will go up. Take it to the dump. |
Anonymous
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I am not in the DMV but wanted to comment that it helps to find certain types of charities.
We had luck giving brown wood furniture and unable to be sold oriental rugs to a charity that helps poor people furnish entire homes for free. It's like a Goodwill that doesn't charge. People can come and pick out an entire apartment worth of stuff. The other place where we had luck was a single outlet charity store in an area where people go antiquing. They were more interested in small brown wood pieces. The world has truly changed. You could furnish an entire Boomer house for pennies on the dollar. |
Anonymous
| I would contact a company like maxsold - they handle pretty low end estate sales that attract pickers - and see if they can try to sell but agree to clear out the junk after. Find out the price, and if it’s worth it to you, ask them if you can pay extra so they will write your mom a bigger check so it meets her mental value. Take your mom away for the weekend and get it done |
Anonymous
This has been devastating for some people of that generation. The deal was that you saved up and bought what was considered high end, and it was supposed to have lasting value. Many cannot compute that nobody wants the china sets or heavy furniture that they worked so hard to afford. |
Anonymous
| just tell then you sold it but really trash or donate |