There is no right time, and no rush
Losing someone is hard enough without the practical tasks that follow. Their home holds a lifetime of belongings, and deciding what to do with them can bring up all sorts of feelings. Some people want to make a start straight away; others need weeks or months before they feel ready. Both are completely normal.
When you do feel ready, we're here to take the physical work off your shoulders, so you can concentrate on your family and on yourself.
How we approach a bereavement clearance
A quiet first conversation
Send us a message whenever it suits you. We'll ask a few simple questions about the home and what you'd like to happen. We can usually visit to give a free, no-obligation quote, or quote from photos if you'd rather not go back to the house just yet.
With you there, or on your behalf
Some families like to be present while we work, and others prefer to hand us the keys. Either is absolutely fine. Before we begin, tell us what you'd like us to look out for: photographs, letters, jewellery, medals, recipe books, a particular ornament. We'll keep these aside and return them to you, along with any paperwork we come across, such as bank statements, pension letters or documents that might matter to the estate.
Clearing with respect
We treat every room as someone's home, not a job to rush through. Belongings are handled carefully, and we're happy to work room by room over more than one visit if that feels easier.
Where your loved one's belongings go
Many families find comfort in knowing that furniture, clothing, books and household items will be useful to someone else. We sort everything as we go, so anything reusable is donated or recycled where possible, and the rest goes to licensed facilities. If there was a cause your relative cared about, let us know and we can talk about whether suitable items could go there.
Things that may help before we start
- Take your time choosing keepsakes. If it helps, put a note on anything other family members may want.
- Check with whoever is dealing with the estate before anything of value is removed. Our page on clearing a house during probate explains why.
- Unused medicines are best taken back to a pharmacy, and loaned equipment such as a hospital bed or walking frame may need returning to the service that supplied it.
- If relatives live further away, we can plan around their visits to collect items.
Support beyond the clearance
Grief doesn't follow a timetable, and clearing a home can bring it to the surface. If you'd like someone to talk to, Cruse Bereavement Support offers free bereavement support and information.
If you're keeping some of the furniture but not all of it, our furniture collection service can take just the pieces you don't need. And when the time comes to empty the house completely, our full house clearance follows the same careful approach.
Here for families in Northallerton and the surrounding towns
We work across Northallerton and the towns and villages around it, including Thirsk, Bedale, Stokesley and Richmond. If you live some distance from the home that needs clearing, we can work with key holders, neighbours, solicitors or estate agents, and keep you updated as we go.
Whenever you're ready, send us a message and we'll talk it through, with no pressure at all.
