Category: Blog

Clearing out a home after inheriting

If you’re faced with clearing out the home of a loved one you’re probably on an emotional roller coaster. I can be a bittersweet process. You’ll expectedly come across items that make you laugh as well as cry. Whether you’re the executor of the will or not, you’ve been given an important task. The process is similar to preparing your home for sale (your own home) but with a few variations.  A home is likely to be the largest asset of the decedent’s estate. If you’ve been entrusted with this responsibility, here are some things to keep in mind:

Change the locks – You just don’t know how many people might have the key to this house. Cleaners, friends, dog walkers, all could be key holders. By changing the locks (and the garage code if applicable) you’ll rest assured that no one will enter the home without your permission.

Forward the mail – if you are not residing at the home while preparing it for market, have the mail forwarded to your home or office. Have newspapers cancelled. You don’t want letters, bills and newspapers piling up in or around the mail box. Nothing says “empty home” like the accumulation of mail; a clear invitation to vandals and burglars. Go to USPS.gov to fill out a change of address form. Don’t forget about email as well. Assuming you can get into the decedent’s email account, you can request emails be sent to you. This may help you determine who creditors are, whether payments are current as well as seeing if any subscriptions need to be cancelled.

Keep paying the bills – While you’ll want to stop some services, there are others that need to continue until the home is sold. Homeowner’s insurance, mortgage and utilities are just some examples of services that need to stay current. You may also want to continue such services as the landscaper, pool service, and exterminator.

Legal and financial papers – Start with the most obvious places to look for these kinds of papers such as the file cabinet and desk drawers. But don’t limit your search to the obvious. Check for papers under the mattress, taped to the underside of a drawer or inside a book. Of course, check the computer as well for electronic files.

Ask your realtor – if you’ve chosen a realtor to list the home, now is the time to ask them for their input with regard to staging the home for sale. This just means that they have a vision of how the home should look in order to attract the most potential buyers. If the home has tasteful furnishings, the realtor might ask that you leave the home “as is”. A furnished home usually sells more quickly and an empty one. If the existing furnishings are outdated and don’t enhance the property, they may ask that you completely empty the home. You might want to have a conversation then about staging the home with a professional stager who will bring in lovely furnishings and accessories for a fee. There is an option that lies somewhere between a completely empty home and a fully staged home; staging with a mix of existing furnishings and new furnishings or accessories. You can try this yourself but you may want to call in a professional such as the Ready, Set Move Group to guide you through the process.  Remember, it’s best to find out early on if the realtor thinks items such as the dining room set or bedroom set need to stay in order to help sell the home before you ship it off to a family member.

Sort personal belongings – This will probably be your most emotionally charged task. While it may seem overwhelming, try to chip away at it each day. Create useful sorting categories and physically place the items in groupings or use color coded stickers. Main categories such as: keep, sell, donate, and discard are a great way to start. You may want to divide the “keep” category into items for different family members.

Home furnishings – As with personal belongings, create categories for large pieces of furniture. You and the realtor may decide the furnishings should stay while the home is on the market but have a plan for the items once the home sells. Create categories such as: ship to family members, sell, donate and dispose.

Consider hiring someone to manage the process of preparing the home for sale, especially if you don’t live nearby. Someone who can compassionately sort through a lifetime of belongings, knows the ins and outs of staging a home, shipping resources, local charity resources and guidelines (you’d be surprised at how difficult it can be to donate certain types of items!) as well as reputable auction houses and affordable disposal companies. They can also continue to maintain the home, manage local professional services such as roof cleaners and painters and will keep you in the loop every step of the way, feeing you to get back to your normal activities. The Ready, Set Move Group has experience with both local and international clients who have inherited homes and needed to prepare them for sale. Call us for more information.

Whether you are tackling this process alone, with family members or have delegated it to a pro, taking the proper steps in preparing the home for market can result in a less stressful, more peaceful process and will likely increase the value of the home.

Contact us today for a free phone consultation.

Top 10 Duties of an Executor with Step by Step instructions

When a loved one passes away and their will is accepted for probate, the executor “steps into their shoes,” meaning he or she can perform all the legal tasks the decedent used to do. This includes selling property, paying creditors, bringing lawsuits, reviewing medical records and distributing assets to others. In addition, an Executor may be responsible for preparing a home for sale. Clearly, acting as an executor is an important job, assigned to an individual the decedent considered a responsible person. 

Executors can be attorneys, accountants or bank or trust companies. More often, however, they are trusted family members or friends. For family and friends, they have the difficult task of balancing the mourning of the loss of a loved one to the fiduciary duty of the Executor.  

Depending on the complexity of circumstances, an executor will be required to carry out any or all of the following duties:

1. File a copy of the will with the local probate court. Even if probate isn’t necessary, the will still must be filed with the probate court.
2. Notify agencies and companies. Agencies such as The Social Security Administration, credit card companies, and decedent’s bank need to be notified.
3. Decide what kind of probate is needed. Sometimes probate isn’t needed or the value of the estate may allow it to pass through an expedited process. You’ll need to file a petition with the court if probate is required and will most likely need an attorney’s help to do this.
4. Represent the estate in court. An executor may be needed to appear in court on behalf of the estate.
5. Set up an estate bank account. Use this to pay any outstanding bills the decedent may have such as  utilities, and mortgage payments. This account will also be used to hold any incoming paychecks or money owed to the decedent.
6. File an inventory of the estate’s assets with the court.
7. Care for the property until it can be sold or distributed. This includes maintaining a house until it is distributed or sold. An executor is responsible for finding all personal property in the estate, including such items as a safety deposit box.
8. Pay debts and taxes of the estate. This includes notifying creditors and filing income tax returns for that year.
9. Distribute assets. Supervise the distribution of the deceased person’s property/assets according to the will or to those entitled by law. Now is a good time to consult with a reputable auction house like the one I work with frequently, Neely Auction, for advice on how best to handle certain assets. 
10. Dispose of other property. If any property is left after paying the estate’s debts and dispersing assets to heirs, the executor is responsible for disposing of it. 

While being chosen as an executor is a special honor, it can also be stressful and time consuming. At Ready, Set, Move Group we have experience in handling the contents of an inherited homes throughout Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Trust us to compassionately sort through a lifetime of possessions while keeping you in the loop every step of the way. Whether you live nearby or across the ocean, we can handle distributing the contents of the home as well as preparing it for market.

Contact us today for a free phone consultation.

Downsizing to live a less stressful life

While downsizing your life can be exciting, it can also be stressful. The goal is to create a simpler life for yourself, but if you’re preparing your home for sale or moving out of a large family apartment you’ve lived in for what seems like a lifetime already, it can be overwhelming. Downsizing is more than just a step in preparing your home for market, it’s the careful planning needed to make a smooth transition into your new home.

It may seem challenging now, but in the long run, downsizing and decluttering will actually help you live a less stressful life. You’ll have fewer possessions to maintain, clean, repair and, potentially, stumble over.

Here are some ideas to help you get started:

• START EARLY! It’s never too early to begin the downsizing process. Begin by focusing on typical problem areas such as the attic, basement, garage, closets, and file cabinets. Choose one area and just dig in. 

• SHOW YOUR GENEROSITY. Since you can’t take everything you own to your new home, now is the perfect time to “gift” some of your treasures to special people in your life like family, helpful neighbors, friends, favorite organizations, your church/synagogue or a charity of your choice.

• SELL ITEMS OF VALUE. Remember, “Some people’s trash is another’s treasure”. A yard sale could be a convenient way to dispose of some unwanted items and to make a few dollars. Just evaluate the goods you plan to sell to determine if the potential is worth the effort of organizing the yard sale. And, if you have art or furniture that you believe has some value, contact a local art auction and consignment house. They will typically visit your home to assess the items of interest and either provide an offer to buy or determine items qualified to go to auction. Remember though, what was originally paid for an item doesn’t necessarily mean that is what will be offered. It is based on the individual item and current trends and consumer demand. Also ask about the sales commission rate for items consigned for auction.

• KEEP YOUR MEMORIES. You probably have boxes of family and vacation photos. Consider new ways to preserve family memories and stories like copying your special photos on to CDs, or try your hand at scrap-booking. There are also professional services that will take all your photos, slides, and videos and do it for you. 

• NEW LOOKS FOR BOOKS. If you own a lot of books, you need to spend time downsizing your collections. Books take up lots of space and are heavy (and costly) to move. Consider donations to libraries or senior centers, or sales to used bookstores. Call on a book dealer for older books with potential value.

• USE IT UP AND DON’T MOVE IT OUT. Check your cabinets, fridge and pantry and take an inventory of your canned goods, frozen foods, and paper products. Plan to use as many of these products as you can before moving. When you consider the potential cost of packing and moving you may be better off reducing your box count and going to the grocery store after your move. If you simply have too many of these items, think about the less fortunate and pass them on to a local food pantry. 

• RECYCLE SAFELY. Locate and put together all of your household, yard, and automotive cleaning products, as well as paints that can be considered hazardous. Other items considered hazardous include auto batteries, fluorescent lamps, fire extinguishers, fireworks, pool chemicals and propane tanks. You’ll have to move them before selling your home. Check with you local waste disposal or public works departments for the specifics of disposal in your area.

• KEEP IN TOUCH. Create a list of people, places, and utilities/services that need to be notified of your upcoming change in address. 

• PLAN AHEAD. Make a floor plan of your new home and use your computer or cut out furniture templates to determine the pieces of furniture that will fit in your new home, and the best location of each. Knowing which pieces will fit in your new space will keep you from moving too much furniture and really streamline the process on packing and moving day. 

• PACK A SURVIVAL BAG. Just like your carry-on bag on a flight or a cruise vacation, put together a survival bag for move day. Items to consider include personal needs (medications, eyeglasses, toiletries including a roll of toilet tissue, change of clothes, important papers, etc); kitchen needs (snacks, drinks, folding chair, disposable cups/plates); basic tools (hammer, screwdriver, flashlight, tape, etc.); cleaning supplies (sponge, roll of paper towels, soap, etc.); and payment for mover – be sure you know which form of payment they prefer. 

• DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP! Don’t be too proud or independent-minded to ask for help. Moving is not easy and you do not have to do it all yourself. Some of these downsizing steps take time to accomplish. Remember your goal is to move into your new home happy, healthy, and ready to enjoy you new lifestyle! This is what we do every day at Ready, Set Move Group. If you are looking to learn more about how we can help, Contact us today.

Why Spend Time Decluttering Your Home Before Listing It

If you are preparing your home for sale and have about 1 million things to take care of, is a review of your belongings and decluttering on that list?

It should be – because while you may love your “stuff”, prospective home buyers are trying to envision themselves in your home. Forty family photos on the mantle doesn’t help. De-cluttering is one of the first steps in preparing your home for market.

Even beautiful, organized homes will benefit from decluttering before selling. The primary benefit is that decluttering helps you sell a home faster and for top dollar in today’s competitive market. Here are a few benefits of decluttering a home before listing it. 

It makes your home look larger

It’s simple – clutter makes a home look smaller than it is. Even a large, open floor plan can look cramped if there is too much furniture, décor, and other items in that space. Having less around will make your home appear larger and more open. Keep the necessary pieces of furniture and remove the excess or anything that impedes traffic flow. And remember, if you add anything – add décor to define each space and provide some character.

It increases the perceived value of the home

Homes with a lot of clutter tend to look like they haven’t been maintained well. While the house may actually be clean, the perception from buyers will be that it’s not. Clutter-free homes are far more appealing and appear to be better maintained and have more perceived value. The objective of all home sales is to sell fast and to sell at the asking price or better. Thoughtful decluttering can pay for itself many times over.

It’s less distracting

Admit it, when you enter a house, your eyes roam and focus on personal items that are interesting…Or not. Just like you, when prospective buyers are touring a home, they can be easily distracted by things like personal items and clutter. The more items there are around, the more there is for them to look at rather than paying attention to the home itself. To draw their attention to the home’s strongest selling features, remove all possible distractions.

Helps buyers imagine themselves in the space

Walking through someone else’s home can be uncomfortable for many people. Having constant reminders of this increases that awkwardness and can spill over into how buyers feel about the home itself. Clearing out all the clutter helps them see the home as a neutral space rather than one owned by someone else and gives them the opportunity to start imagining what life would be like if they lived there. Thinking you could use some help to declutter?

Contact us today for a free phone consultation.