Estate Cleanout Checklist

Before you throw anything away

Work through paperwork, jewelry boxes, freezers and the backs of drawers first. Deeds, savings bonds, photographs and small valuables routinely surface in the least likely containers. Assign one sealed box for anything requiring family review.

A four-pile system that works

Keep, donate, sell and dispose. Physically separate the piles into different rooms rather than different corners — mixed piles get re-sorted repeatedly, and re-sorting is what turns a weekend into three weekends.

Room order matters

Start with storage spaces: garage, attic, sheds and closets. They hold the highest volume of clearly disposable material, and clearing them creates staging room for sorting the living areas.

Handle these separately

Paint, chemicals, propane, batteries and refrigerant appliances cannot go in the container. Medications should go to a pharmacy take-back. Documents with account numbers deserve shredding rather than a dumpster.