Tidying Up When Selling – Lesson Five

The final lesson in the KonMari Method™ is sentimental items. As REALTORS® this is one of the hardest things to discuss with our clients when selling their homes. Too many sentimental items in your house, or items that match your unique tastes can turn off some potential buyers. Like the other lessons in Marie’s method, lesson five can immediately contribute to your bottom line when selling your home. And like some of the other lessons, it can also be very difficult!

To start, save all sentimental items for the end of the tidying process. If you encountered any of those items in steps 1-4, now is the time to bring them out. These items are often difficult to tidy because we have an emotional connection with them. Perhaps that drawing is from your child who is now grown and has moved out of the house, and you miss that younger time. Perhaps that item of clothing was from a time when you went through a lot of changes, and you have a lot of respect for that time in your life. Perhaps a loved one has passed, and that item or antique was given to you from that loved one.

The best part about Marie’s method is that we can decide what is important to us and what sparks joy for us. If those items do spark joy and you will revisit them, good news, you can keep them! But they shouldn’t be buried in a tub in the basement or the garage. They should be where you can easily get to them each day. Don’t want to see those items each day? That is when to evaluate if it truly sparks joy.

That wraps up our series on Marie Kondo! Have you tried any of her tidying tips? Is your home no longer sparking joy? Our REALTORS® can help with that.