How to clean out a parent’s house, in the right order

By the Senior Transition Pros team · Last updated: October 19, 2026

If you are reading this, you are probably standing in a house full of a lifetime: furniture, paperwork, photographs, and a garage nobody has fully opened in years. You may be grieving, or doing this from another state on a deadline. Either way, the order you do things in matters more than how fast you do them. Done in the wrong order, a cleanout costs families real money and real peace. Done in the right order, it is a manageable project with a clear finish line.

This guide walks through the sequence Atlanta families actually use: secure the home, make the first calls and sort out the legal frame, family claims in writing, appraise, sell, donate and discard, then get the house ready to list.

Step 1: The first 48 hours, secure and document

Before anything leaves the house, do four things.

Secure the home. Change or rekey the locks, especially if caregivers, cleaners, or neighbors had keys, and collect spare keys and garage remotes. A house sitting partly empty for weeks is a target, and a lock change is cheap insurance.

Keep the house alive. Keep utilities on, particularly power and water. In Atlanta summers, a house without air conditioning grows mold fast, and the home’s value suffers. Keep the thermostat set and a light on a timer. Forward the mail to the person handling the estate. Call the homeowner’s insurance company, tell them the home is vacant or in transition, and confirm the policy stays in force. Some policies change terms when a home sits empty, and you want that settled now, not after a pipe bursts.

Find the paperwork before anything moves. Somewhere in that house there is usually a desk drawer or filing cabinet that runs the whole process. Look for the will, the deed, insurance policies, bank and investment statements, titles to vehicles, tax returns, and any list of accounts or passwords your parent left. These papers go to one locked box that leaves the house with the person in charge, and nowhere else.

Photograph every room. Walk through slowly and take wide photos of each room, closet, the garage, and the attic, plus close shots of anything valuable. This record protects everyone. It documents what was in the home before sorting began, which matters for the estate inventory, for insurance, and for family peace later.

Step 2: Know the Georgia frame before you move a thing

This is general information, not legal advice, and an hour with a Georgia probate or elder law attorney early on is some of the best money an estate spends.

In Georgia, most estates that own a house pass through the probate court in the county where your parent lived, and you file in that county. In metro Atlanta that usually means the Fulton County Probate Court, the DeKalb County Probate Court, the Cobb County Probate Court, or the Gwinnett County Probate Court. The process starts with a petition filed with that court, usually with the death certificate and the original will, if there is one. Georgia uses standard forms for these filings, published as the Georgia Probate Court standard forms by the Council of Probate Court Judges of Georgia.

If the will names an executor, the court issues that person a document called Letters Testamentary. If there is no will, the court appoints an administrator and issues Letters of Administration. Those letters are the legal authority to act for the estate, and banks, buyers, and title companies will ask to see them. Until someone holds them, nobody in the family has clear authority to sell the house, close accounts, or distribute property.

That is why the order matters. Creditors are paid before heirs in Georgia, and the person in charge owes the estate an accounting of what it owned, so selling or giving away valuable items before the estate is opened can create real problems. Ordinary sorting, cleaning, and securing the home can start right away. Selling the sterling, signing with a buyer, or dividing significant assets should wait until the estate is open and the right person holds the letters.

One Georgia concept worth knowing by name is year’s support. A surviving spouse, minor children, or both can ask the probate court to set aside property from the estate to support them for a year. It carries high priority over most other claims, and it can apply whether or not there is a will. The rules live in the Georgia year’s support statute, O.C.G.A. Section 53-3. There is a firm deadline: the petition must be filed within 24 months of the death. If that is your family, ask the attorney about it in your first conversation, not your last.

A practical note for out-of-state families: Georgia does not require the executor to live here, but the work is local. The court, the house, and most of the pros you hire are local, and many families lean on one local point person rather than flying in for every step.

Step 3: Family claims, in writing, before anything sells

This is the step families skip, and the step that prevents the fights everyone remembers.

Set up four categories and apply them to everything in the house: keep (a family member takes it), sell (it goes in the estate sale or auction), donate (it goes to charity), and discard (worn out, broken, or unsafe). Work room by room, and finish a room before starting the next.

Put claims in writing. Walk each family member through the house, in person or by video, and record who wants what on one shared list. Then set one deadline for claims, in writing, shared with everyone: claims close on this date, and unclaimed items move to sell or donate. If two people want the same item, agree on a fair method in advance (taking turns choosing, or a buyout from the estate at appraised value), and let the person administering the estate break ties. Decide the method before the first conflict, not during it.

For out-of-state siblings, photos do the heavy lifting. Send clear photos of the meaningful categories (furniture, china, art, tools, keepsakes) with a simple reply format: claim, pass, or ask a question, by the deadline. One decision maker collects the answers.

Give sentimental items their own slower lane. Photographs, letters, military items, and handmade things rarely have market value, and they are what people regret losing. Box them separately, label the box, and never let them ride out with a donation load in a tired moment. If nobody can decide now, a small storage unit for one month is cheaper than a permanent family argument.

Step 4: Appraise before you donate

The most expensive mistake in a cleanout is donating or discarding the few categories that hold quiet value. Before any donation truck is scheduled, walk the house looking for these:

• Mid-century furniture. Clean-lined pieces from the 1950s and 1960s, especially marked or designer pieces, are in real demand, and an old credenza can be the most valuable thing in the house.
• Sterling silver. Sterling flatware and serving pieces have metal value even when the pattern is dated. Silver plate has very little. Check for the word sterling on the back.
• Coins, jewelry, and watches. Coin collections, gold jewelry, and older watches should be looked at, never tossed into a sale pile.
• Tools and equipment. Good hand tools, woodworking machinery, and lawn equipment sell well.
• Vinyl records. Most are worth little, but jazz, blues, soul, and early rock in good condition can be valuable, and Atlanta has serious buyers.
• Georgia pottery and regional art. Face jugs, folk pottery, and original paintings by Georgia artists are collectible and easy for an out-of-town family to miss.

A certified personal property appraiser gives you a written value for the pieces that matter. An appraisal pays for itself when the estate may be taxable, when siblings need a fair number to divide things, when anything may be worth more than a few thousand dollars, or when you want a defensible record. It is a half day of work that protects the person in charge for years.

Step 5: Sell what is sellable, the right way

Atlanta families generally choose among four routes, and many houses use two of them.

A traditional estate sale is a priced sale in the home over two or three days, run by a local company that sorts, prices, stages, advertises, and staffs it. It is the workhorse for a full house with a good mix of goods.

An online auction sells item by item to bidders, with pickup at the house. It suits collectible-heavy houses, families who cannot host an in-home sale, and items that need a wider audience than one neighborhood.

A buyout is one lump sum from a dealer or liquidator for everything, with the house emptied fast, sometimes within days. It pays noticeably less than a well-run sale, and for an out-of-state family facing a closing date, that trade can be worth it.

Consignment places a few better pieces (fine furniture, art, rugs, jewelry) in a shop that sells them over time for a share of the price. Slow and selective, right for the top few items only.

How reputable companies charge: on commission, commonly 30 to 40 percent of gross sales, with higher percentages for smaller or more labor-heavy sales. That commission covers pricing, staging, advertising, and staff. For scale, EstateSales.net’s 2018 survey put the average estate sale at $18,565 in gross sales before commissions, and families should see that math in plain numbers before signing. Most reputable companies do not ask for money up front, but some charge extra for appraisals, post-sale cleanout, or donation and disposal hauling, so ask what the commission does not cover before you sign. Get the contract in writing, and make sure it states the commission, what happens to unsold items, who handles the cleanout afterward, and when the estate gets paid.

Timelines surprise people. Most sales need two to four weeks of preparation between signing and sale day, and companies book up in spring and fall, so call early. Know the limits too: many companies decline houses with too little sellable value, most will not handle hazardous items, and some refuse large upholstered furniture, particle board pieces, and older televisions. Ask in the first conversation, not the last week.

Step 6: Donate and discard, in that order

After the sale, what remains goes to donation first, disposal second.

Three Atlanta options cover most of what a cleanout leaves behind:

• Atlanta Habitat for Humanity ReStore offers free pickup for large or hard-to-transport items: furniture, appliances, cabinets, and building materials in good condition. It does not take clothing or linens, and free pickup appointments typically run 3 to 5 weeks out, so book early. Paid priority pickup options can come within about 72 hours.
• The Furniture Bank of Metro Atlanta offers free standard pickup of essential furniture in good, usable condition across Fulton, Cobb, Gwinnett, and DeKalb counties. Donated furniture goes directly to families setting up homes, and the Furniture Bank even takes mattresses and box springs in any condition.
• Goodwill of North Georgia takes donations at its donation centers for free. If you need a pickup at the house, Goodwill offers home pickup through its ReSupply partner for a fee paid by the donor.

Call before the sale ends, not after, so pickup lands in the same week the house empties, and keep the donation receipts for the estate’s records.

A few categories need special handling. Medications are a take-back first item: use a drug take-back location, such as a pharmacy or law enforcement drop box, whenever one is available. If no take-back option is available, FDA guidance allows mixing the medications with something unappealing, like coffee grounds or cat litter, sealing the container, and placing it in the household trash. A small number of high-risk drugs are on the FDA flush list, so check the label or ask a pharmacist if you are unsure.

Paint, solvents, pesticides, old fuel, and pool chemicals are household hazardous waste, and metro Atlanta has a permanent answer: the CHaRM facilities run by the nonprofit Live Thrive. CHaRM Atlanta, at 1110 Hill Street SE, is open Tuesdays and Thursdays 9 to 2 and Saturdays 8 to 2. CHaRM DeKalb, at 1225 Columbia Drive in Decatur, is open Wednesdays 9 to 2 and Saturdays 8 to 2. Both take drop-offs by appointment only, and some items carry small fees. Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, and Gwinnett counties also run periodic household hazardous waste collection events for residents.

Family paperwork that is not being kept (old statements, tax files, medical records) should be shredded, not bagged for the curb.

What is left is the cleanout crew’s work: furniture nobody can use, garage and attic accumulation, carpet and debris. Crews price by volume or by the job, and a full house cleanout after a sale is often one or two days of work.

Step 7: Get the house ready to list

The goal after a cleanout is “broom clean”: empty, swept, wiped down, with working lights and no remaining property. That is the standard buyers and listing contracts expect.

On repairs, be selective, and let the advice from your Step 2 realtor conversation guide you. Fix what is cheap and visible: leaks, broken fixtures, burned-out bulbs, a front door that sticks. Clean carpets or remove them if the floors beneath are good. Skip renovations entirely: estates rarely recover the cost of a kitchen update, and buyers of longtime family homes expect to do their own work. Neutral paint is usually the only cosmetic spend that earns its money back, and even that depends on the house.

Do not forget these four

Firearms. Guns are common in Georgia homes, and many estate sale companies will not handle them, so ask before sale weekend, not during it. A licensed firearms dealer (an FFL) can appraise what you find and handle a sale or consignment properly. Never transport a loaded firearm. If the family simply does not want a gun in the house, the local police non-emergency line can advise on surrender options.

Vehicles. A car titled in your parent’s name usually moves through the estate. The executor or administrator brings the title, the Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, and a death certificate to the county tag office to retitle it. If the car will be sold, get the estate paperwork in order first: most buyers and dealers will ask to see it.

Social Security. The funeral home usually reports the death to Social Security. If that did not happen, call Social Security yourself. Any benefit paid for the month of death must be returned, and an eligible spouse or child may receive a one-time $255 death payment, so ask about it on the call.

Digital accounts and subscriptions. Keep your parent’s email account accessible while the estate is open: password resets, account statements, and notices from banks and insurers land there. Then work through bank and card statements for recurring charges, and cancel what the estate no longer needs: streaming services, clubs, delivery services, and the subscriptions that quietly bill every month.

How long the whole job takes

Every house is different, but a typical Atlanta cleanout runs about 6 to 12 weeks. Weeks 1 to 2 go to securing the home, making the first calls, and opening the estate. Weeks 2 to 6 go to sorting room by room and closing out family claims. The estate sale itself usually runs a single weekend, after two to four weeks of preparation. Donation pickups and the final cleanout follow, and listing prep happens once the house is empty. A buyout compresses all of this into days when a deadline matters more than the price. Treat this as a rough guide, not a promise.

The whole job on one page

• Rekey the locks, collect spare keys and remotes
• Utilities stay on, lawn kept, mail forwarded
• Homeowner’s insurance notified that the home is in transition
• Will, deed, policies, and account papers found and secured in one box
• Every room photographed before anything moves
• First calls made: probate attorney, SRES realtor, insurance company
• Georgia probate petition filed in the county probate court where your parent lived
• Executor or administrator holds Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
• If a spouse or minor children survive, year’s support raised with the attorney
• Social Security notified (the funeral home usually reports the death)
• Family claims list written, one decision maker, one deadline
• Sentimental items boxed and labeled separately
• Value categories checked; appraiser hired if anything warrants it
• Firearms handled through a licensed dealer, not the estate sale
• Estate sale, auction, buyout, or consignment chosen; contract in writing
• Donation pickup scheduled before the sale ends; receipts kept
• Medications to a take-back location; hazardous waste to CHaRM or a county event; paperwork shredded
• Vehicle retitled through the estate at the county tag office
• Subscriptions and autopay services cancelled; email account kept open while the estate is open
• Cleanout crew takes the rest; house left broom clean
• Repairs limited to what the market rewards; house listed

When to hire which pro

Questions families ask us

Can I sell things before probate?

Sorting, cleaning, and securing the home can start right away. Selling or giving away valuable property should wait until the probate court has opened the estate and issued Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, because those letters are the legal authority to act for the estate. Selling significant assets before they are issued can create problems with creditors and with the estate accounting, so ask a Georgia probate attorney first if you are unsure.

What do estate sale companies charge in Atlanta?

Most reputable Atlanta estate sale companies work on commission, commonly 30 to 40 percent of gross sales, with higher percentages for smaller or more labor-heavy sales. The commission usually covers pricing, staging, advertising, and staffing. Some companies charge extra for appraisals, post-sale cleanout, or donation and disposal hauling, so ask what the commission does not cover before you sign.

How long does it take to clean out a house in Atlanta?

Most families finish in about 6 to 12 weeks. Weeks 1 to 2 go to securing the home and opening the estate, weeks 2 to 6 to sorting and family claims, the sale itself usually runs one weekend, and listing prep happens once the house is empty. A buyout can empty a house in days when a deadline matters more than the price.

What if my parent is still living and moving to assisted living?

Then probate does not apply. A power of attorney, if your parent has one, is usually the document that lets you act on their behalf, and a senior move manager becomes the key hire: they plan the move, sort what fits the new home, and coordinate the sale or donation of the rest. An elder law attorney can confirm the documents you need.

This guide is general information for Georgia families, not legal, tax, or financial advice. For probate filings, year’s support, and estate tax questions, consult a Georgia probate or elder law attorney.