You know you need to make some changes, you’re in the beginning stages asking yourself “should I sell my Cape Coral house” or you’ve inherited a home and have sentimental belongings to figure out, can you sell them? Can you give them away? Should you part ways, after all, they are sentimental….
Most people have sentimental belongings, from pictures to furniture and everything in between. Some can be stored in small space while others need a lot of space. We cherish the memory the sentimental items represent, maybe a family member or a happy event that happened in our life, so letting it goes feels wrong, or that you will lose the memory and can even cause guilt resulting in heightened anxiety. This is a trap and can cause us to keep so many things we wouldn’t normally want and in more extreme cases lead to hoarding. Good intentions holding on to sentimental belongings can still lead to unhealthy places.
The first step is acknowledging you have sentimental belongings, and you want to let them go. Sometimes just acknowledging it and thinking about it for a short while is the first step. Ask yourself the question:
“Would I keep this if it didn’t have sentimental value”
“Would I want to own these items absent sentimental value?”
If the answer is no, then start to consider where they will go. I had a very hard time letting go of sentimental belongings, what really changed for me is when I started my cash home buying business Henry Home Buyer, where I buy homes As-Is, sometimes people sell me the house and leave everything in it. Sometimes inherited homes and the Seller lived out of state, the children that inherited the house didn’t know what to do with all the belongings. When I purchase a new house with everything left in it, it’s now on me to sort through sentimental belongings of people who held on to them until they perished. I didn’t like the thought of a stranger sorting through my sentimental belongings figuring out what to do with them or leaving the task to my family members trying to figure out what to do with my stuff. This experience caused me to have a mental shift and changed how I viewed sentimental belongings. I went full steam ahead.
Give yourself permission to let things go. Its ok to let sentimental items go and still keep the memory, you’re not letting anyone down. Re-read the last sentence, its very powerful when you embrace this.
If you’re struggling to let sentimental belongings go, start small. Donate or sell something you have and see how it makes you feel. I’ve found letting go is a process and sometimes takes time to let things go, a little here, then you feel encouraged and a weight off your shoulders, give yourself a little time and you’ll be ready to let go of more items.
There’s tremendous joy in letting a sentimental belonging go to another person who cherishes the items or needs them. You will be pleasantly surprised how good it feels when you can bless someone else with your sentimental belongings.
My personal success stories letting items go.
My brother unfortunately passed away, he had an amplifier for his guitar, we sold it to another musician who was so thrilled to own it, we requested he send us a video using it. He indeed sent a video, this brought tears of joy to see another person using the amplifier my brother loved. My brother would of wanted that. He would not want us to store it forever in the garage.
I inherited a table and hutch, my Dad and his parents would sit there as a family, this was my prized possession, my family used it but it didn’t fit my décor in my house, so I gave it to my sister. She was thrilled, my family was happy it stayed in the family and now when I go there I get so much joy seeing their family use it and know the memory carries on.
Lastly my Dad, I’ve been encouraging my parents to give sentimental belongings away and experience the joy it is letting things go and seeing another who appreciates them. My father inherited vintage outboard boat motors from his Dad, who is now long passed on. My Dad always had the intention of repairing the motors, time goes by, and they just sat for years and years. The reality is he will never repair them. He accepted this reality and posted them for sale on Facebook Market place, another collector wanted them. My Dad was able to talk about them and the buyer was very excited, it made my Dad feel good to know someone was very excited about the motors and would be going to a good person, this made his Dad happy. After the gentlemen purchased the motors, he fixed them and sent my Dad a video and absolutely made my Dads day. Since then, my parents have felt the happiness, stress removal of parting ways with sentimental belongings and the weight has been lifted from their shoulders. If feels so enlightening to let go.
Sentimental belongings can be a trap and hold you with guilt that you are the responsible guardian for them – this is simply not true, don’t let guilt control you. Release yourself from it.
Some local charities will offer to pick up furniture or larger belongings. You can find charities that you morally support and donate to them.
If you’ve inherited a house and don’t want the hassle of decluttering, removing personal belongings and want an easy out.If you have inherited a home or have a home in poor condition and just want it sold without any hassles check out Henry Home Buyer and get a fair cash offer.
Thanks for reading, Here at TM Listings, we’re here to help, please contact us so we can help you achieve your real estate goals.