With the housing market steadily overcoming the recession dip, selling a home is easier than it used to be. But just because more people are looking doesn’t mean sellers can get lax about their end of the bargain. Home staging is an important element of home sales. And what’s the point of a fresh coat of paint when your house is littered with clutter?

Decluttering for Home Staging

1. Start outside and work your way in. After all, the yard, porch, and entryways are the first things potential buyers see when they enter a house. They’re also the last impression they get of the house before they leave. Store bikes, sports equipment, and garden equipment in the garden or shed. Sweep the driveway, sidewalk, and front porch. Clean up the mudroom to eliminate coats, shoes, school stuff, and accumulated junk mail.
2. Sort the wheat from the chaff. We all own hundreds of items we’ll never use. Take your house room by room, boxing up the items you haven’t used in over a month. If it’s a seasonal item, toss it if you haven’t touched in over a year. If an item has sentimental value, box it up. Give yourself a limit to how many boxes you’ll store in the attic, and stick to it. Trust us, it’ll be easier to stage your home for sale if you’re not tripping over stuff leftover from your college student’s childhood.
3. Out of sight, out of mind. Buyers want to see the potential of a home, not the actuality of living there. After you’ve hauled off home clutter, tuck away the rest of your home items. Box (and label!) infrequently used stuff like bundt pans, china, and guest linens. Tuck items you use daily under counters and in drawers to preserve that fresh, clean home aesthetic.

Whether you’re tossing boxes that haven’t seen the light of day in years or decluttering after selling your house, Mr. Junk is here to make your move easier. Call us to haul away furniture, appliances, and junk you no longer need.

Home Clutter Image Source

With the recent dip in temperatures, it’s impossible to ignore that fall is truly on its way. Folks across Atlanta are digging under beds and through attic storage for their cool weather clothes. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all the unnecessary stuff we accumulate in our closets. Keep your fall wardrobe clean, organized, and ready to wear with these closet organization life hacks.

Life Hacks for Organizing Your Closet

1. No matter how many door-hanging organizers or shoe racks you buy, shoes always seem to wind up in a jumbled mess on the closet floor. Get ahead of this year’s tripping hazards with two shoe organization tricks. One: Hang crown molding on the wall of your closet and use the ledge to hang heels. Two: hang tall boots by the tops using pant hangers with built-in clips.
2. Can’t ever find the right clutch? Use a lid-holder from the kitchen for easy purse organization.
3. Organize your accessories. Let’s face it: a lot of accessories are out of sight, out of mind. Keep accessories accessible (without adding to the clutter) by hanging them from nails, drawer knobs, or wires on the wall.
4. Keep your closet clothes-only. Instead of fighting with wrapping paper every time you reach for your coat, store holiday paper on the ceiling by suspending two sturdy wires several feet apart and using the makeshift shelf to store rolls of seasonal paper.

Ready to get rid of last year’s worn out outfits? Call Mr. Junk to haul away old clothes, shoes, and other seasonal junk.

Jeans Image from FreeDigitalPhotos

Home renovations can transform a living space, unveiling a brighter, cleaner, more useable home. But major home renovations can also go awry, and finding a good contractor is only the first step in success. Don’t let your new and improved house fade away under piles of construction debris. Reveal the masterpiece (and increased property values) with these renovation cleanup tips from Mr. Junk.

Renovation Clean Up Tips

1. Designate a debris pile. The easiest way to expedite the cleanup process is to start before you begin. Pile broken drywall, extra boards, and scrap hardware in one place for easy removal. Make sure to keep your useable materials separate from the trash pile, or you’ll waste time and money trying to sort the scrap.
2. Stay safe. Every reno project has broken boards, abandoned nails, and other dangerous construction debris. Designate a specific trash receptacle for hazardous junk from your home renovation. After each day’s work, tour the construction site and toss in any broken glass, loose wires, and other dangerous materials. Always store hand saws and power equipment when not in use.
3. Take advantage of the mess. How long has it been since your last seasonal clean out? It’s time to take advantage of all that extra motivation. Redoing the deck is the perfect excuse to reorganize storage sheds and outdoor closets. Create a pile near your reno debris for unwanted outdoor decor, rusted garden equipment, and other outdoor junk. Donate items in good shape to friends and neighbors. Leave the rest for the scrap pile.
4. Call a professional. At Mr. Junk, we’re used to cleaning up dirty jobs. We know how to stay safe, work efficiently, and leave a construction site looking clean and freshly renovated. Unlike most junk removal companies, we don’t simply grab the big stuff and go. Our team sticks around to sweep up nails and dust after we’re done, leaving your home looking as good as new.

Show off the finished product, not a work in progress. Call Mr. Junk to haul scrap materials and leftover junk from your renovation project.

Do you stay in a claustrophobic bubble day in and day out? Whether you live alone in a tiny apartment, with a spouse in a one bedroom home, or sleep three kids to a room, a lack of living space can affect your productivity and your mood. Moving may not be in the cards, but that doesn’t mean you have to live in a shoebox. Make a smaller home feel larger with these tips from Mr. Junk.

How to Make a Small Home Look Larger

1. Declutter. “Out with the old” is the first step in any home makeover. Before you begin painting, decorating, and replacing furniture, eliminate items you no longer need. Sort through stacks of magazines, toss boxes of “just in case” junk, and remove furniture that no longer serves its purpose (your flat screen doesn’t need a 3-foot deep TV stand, anyway). Store junk in the closet while you renovate the house, adding as you go. At the end of your project, call Mr. Junk to carry off the items that weighed down your home spaces.
2. Paint. You don’t have to live in a world of beige to enjoy the benefits of a larger-looking space. Keep your color palette consistent and stay away from dark or heavy colors. To truly emphasize the extra space in your home, consider painting the trim to match the walls. It draws the eye upward, making ceilings look taller than they actually are.
3. Furniture. Find yourself lacking storage space? Make your furniture pull double duty. Instead of using an end table just as a lamp stand, pick one with a shelf for built-in storage. Pick light, airy pieces instead of heavy, solid wood tables to open up the space.

Ready to let go of the messy past? Call Mr. Junk to haul away clutter that’s junking up your small spaces.

Image from FreeDigitalPhotos

Fall means college football, late season barbecues, and pumpkin spice lattes at local coffee houses. It also means a maintenance list a mile long. Get ahead of outdoor home maintenance this fall with these tips on fall gardening.

4 Ways to Maintain a Fall Garden

1. Clean it up. Nothing ruins curb appeal faster than piles of leaves decaying in the yard. What’s worse? Leaves clogging the gutters. Before trees start dropping leaves, install a gutter guard to block debris. Trust us, you’ll have a much better September if you’re tailgating instead of climbing ladders and cleaning gutters.
2. Store garden equipment. Not only does a garden hoe look terrible lying in the lawn, exposure to the elements makes even the sturdiest equipment rust. Save your wallet (and your property value) by cleaning garden tools after you use them and storing them in a covered shed.
3. Maintain the mower. Many homeowners simply stick their lawn mowers in an empty shed at the end of autumn. Those same homeowners are often surprised to find their machinery malfunctioning come spring. Save yourself the hassle by properly maintaining your lawn mower. Clean away grass clippings after every individual use. Before storing it for the season, drain the gas, check spark plugs and exhaust vents, and make sure it’s not exposed to the elements in its new winter home.
4. Let nature do its thing. Why pay to fertilize the lawn when nature does it for you? Grass clippings and fallen leaves provide all the benefits of fertilizer and mulch. They stifle weeds, release nutrients into the soil, and help the lawn retain moisture. Use leaves and grass as organic fertilizer early in the season, but don’t forget to clean them up before Thanksgiving. Encouraging plant growth late in the season leads to winter shock in most plants.

Mr Junk hauls organic debris, leaving your yard looking better than ever. Giving your garden a seasonal makeover is as simple as cleaning, calling, and hauling!

School is back in session. For many metro Atlanta families, that means another year of tripping over backpacks, losing permission slips, and wondering if the dog really did eat your kid’s homework. Take control of your future (and your child’s) with these back to school organization tips from Mr. Junk.

Back to School Organization

1. Make a long term plan. If backpacks, lunch boxes, and papers don’t have a home, you can say “sayonara” to an organized house. Plan a DIY weekend to redo the mudroom. Create a shelf for shoes, hooks for jackets, and labeled cubbies for each kid’s school stuff. Do a sweep at the end of the night to make sure the kids repack and store their backpacks after the evening’s homework.
2. Kick the clutter. The last thing parents when searching for a teacher’s note is to find crayons ground into the bottom of their child’s backpack. Set aside ten minutes each week to replace, restore, and reorganize school supplies.
3. Stick to a system. The last thing parents want is to rush to school because their child forgot a permission slip. Create a filing system in your home office, complete with next-day, next-week, and long term school forms. For added organization, set a reminder with each date on your phone calendar.
4. Master time. It may seem like a silly trick, but setting the clock ahead 10 minutes helps kids (and parents!) stay on track. Stop stressing that you’ll get out the door two minutes too late.
5. Organize the pantry. Tired of tossing bags of chips into your kids’ lunchboxes — or worse, realizing you’re out of snacks? Bid adieu to lunch box woes by designating a single shelf in the pantry for school food. Store snacks in clear containers so it’s easy to see when to restock.

Ready to toss last year’s clothes, shoes, and ratty backpacks? Call Mr. Junk to haul away boxes for donation.

Back to School Image Source

Moving is hard work. Amid real estate stress, relocation fees, and the monumental task of packing up your life, moving can often feel like a neverending task. Make your move easier by leaving these things behind.

4 Major Items to Leave Behind When You Move

1. Appliances. Many home sales stipulate that the seller leave behind major appliances like stoves, refrigerators, and washer/dryers. Even if it’s not written into the sale, parting with major home appliances saves a hassle when moving. More often than not, the appliances you used daily are in need of replacing anyway.
2. Fixtures. You spent years decorating your home, so it’s only natural that you’re attached to fancy fixtures. But packing up the chandelier or hauling off an antique tub isn’t just time consuming, it’s considered bad form. If there’s a fixture you want to keep for sentimental reasons, make sure to clearly state that it’s not included in the sale contract.
3. Gardens. Gardeners put blood, sweat, and tears into creating an outdoor masterpiece. But think twice if you’re tempted to dig up your favorite tree for your new front yard. Not only are you leaving a gaping hole in the garden, chances are the plant won’t survive the trip. Start fresh at your new place and let the new homeowners enjoy the fruits of your labor.
4. Furniture. Before packing up the moving truck, walk through your new place and mentally place your furniture. If any of your current selection lacks a place in your new home, it’s time to let go. Instead of wasting money on a storage unit, ask the new homeowners if they could use it. Otherwise, call Mr. Junk to haul old furniture away.

Not planning to pack appliances, furniture, or boxes of junk? Call Mr. Junk for a home clean out before you move.

Chandelier Image from FreeDigitalPhotos

When professionals switch to a home office setting, they often find their productivity increases drastically. The peace and quiet allows them to renew their drive to succeed in both short-term and long-term work projects. But as time wears on, clutter piles up. Stop getting distracted by a messy home office. Clean up your working space with these tips from Mr. Junk.

4 Tips for a Clutter-Free Home Office

1. Scrap paper. Even in the digital age, paper piles up. Most professionals have stacks of business documents, memos, and office junk mail. If you work at home, you can probably add home bills and personal letters to the list. Clean your home office by purging old and unnecessary documents. File the rest in a color-coded filing system and designate one spot (a folder or a box) for incoming mail.
2. Make your supervisor proud. It’s hard to work when surrounded by junk. Refocus on the task at hand (and make finding supplies infinitely easier) by organizing office supplies. Designate a drawer for printer cartridges and stationary, keep a jar for pens and highlighters, and move any supplies that aren’t office related into another room.
3. Conceal cables. Printers, computers, and other electronic office equipment come with more cables than you can count. It may seem like a small matter to leave cords tangled behind the printer, but if you take an hour to conceal all your cables, you’ll be amazed at how much cleaner the office looks.
4. Invest in furniture. Many professionals view the home office as a temporary setting. As such, they’re not worried about creating a highly functioning working space. But pulling spare chairs from the dining room feels cluttered after a few weeks of working. Invest in basic office furniture like a desk, an ergonomic office chair, and a bookshelf.

Ready to haul off office clutter? Call Mr. Junk to remove the evidence of your home office organization  project.

Messy Office Image from Flickr

There’s nothing more stressful than moving, whether you’re relocating across town or moving across the country. In addition to the stress of learning a new area, calling cable and internet companies to transfer services, and making sure you’re squared away with your real estate agent, most people wind up taking time off work to tackle chores they’d rather put off. Instead of stressing about your relocation, try these 3 tips for an easier move.

3 Smart Moving Tips

1. Pack with a plan. Everyone’s been there: you got into a packing frenzy two weekends ago, and now you’re stuck digging through boxes for the colander so you can make pasta. Next time, plan your packing spree before you begin. Start in places like the attic or the garage, creating a junk pile for that aren’t worth the hassle of moving. Then pack up garden tools and outdoor equipment. Finally, tackle your indoor spaces, leaving items like kitchen equipment and cleaning supplies for last. Trust us, you’ll need them.
2. Don’t pack the closet. After all, why create hours of extra work for yourself? Instead of unhanging, packing, and later re-hanging a closet full of clothes, ask your movers to bring a garment rack for their truck. Moving yourself? Grab a few spare laundry baskets and fold in your clothes, hangers and all. When you get to your new place, all you have to do is pick up a stack and hang them in your new closet. Voila! Hours of work saved and an instant homey feel.
3. Switch utilities ASAP. As soon as you establish your moving date, schedule the switch for utilities like water and electricity. Make an appointment with a cable provider to install wifi at the new place, especially if you’re working from home during the transition. Cable companies often schedule appointments weeks in advance, and the last thing you need is the stress of working in a coffee shop environment in the interim.

Have stuff you’re not hauling to a new home? Call Mr. Junk to remove unwanted junk before your move.

Moving Image Source

Even the most spacious storage spaces tend to feel cramped and overstuffed. So what do you do when you have a legitimately small closet? Stop losing clothes when you reorganize your bedroom closet with these tips from Mr Junk.

How to Organize a Small Closet

1. Toss last year’s styles. Most people balk at cleaning out their closets, but you’d be surprised how quickly your donations pile grows when you set aside a few hours to clean out stuff you never wear. Sort through hanging clothes, dresser drawers, and shoe/accessory storage to cut down on closet mess.
2. Customize your closet. Is your closet small, oddly shaped, or hard to reach? Don’t be afraid to hang extra rods in the closet, utilize free-standing storage shelves, and use baskets or boxes to keep shoes and accessories organized and accessible.
3. Have a system. If you’re used to rifling through half your closet to find the item you need, a little organization is the answer. Implement a system to make finding items easier. Try hanging work clothes nearest to the door, keeping your favorite clothes easily accessible, or arranging clothes by color or style.
4. Get smart about seasons. Buried in years’ worth of t-shirts, sweaters, and outerwear? Store out of season clothing under the bed or in the attic.
5. Show off your stuff. Accessories like scarves and jewelry can double as home decor. Artfully hang nails or knobs on a blank bedroom wall. Voila! Instant storage you won’t be afraid to show off.

Finished with your closet clean up? Call Mr Junk to remove old clothing and hardware.

Photo from Flickr