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Guides 5

• Clearing an estate: the first few days

  What to do before anything is sold, donated or thrown out, and why the order matters more than the speed.

• Deciding what is worth selling

  Most of a house sells for less than the owner hopes, and some of it doesn't sell at all. Judge each item by the work it takes to sell it, not by what it might be worth, and decide that before you photograph anything.

• Getting rid of old paint and household chemicals

  Half-full paint cans, a propane cylinder and a shelf of mystery bottles can't go in the trash or down a drain. Find your local household hazardous waste collection before you sort anything, because the date decides the rest.

• Sorting a storage unit without paying for it twice

  A storage unit is a monthly bill attached to a pile of decisions you have not made yet. Here is how to empty one deliberately.

• Sorting tools in a garage or workshop

  Rusty hand tools, dead cordless drills, a bench vise and a half-full can of old paint each leave the garage a different way. Clear the floor first and sort by type before you decide what any of it is worth.