Turn Clutter into Cash: Who to Hire to Sell Household Items

Emptying a house is not easy, but fortunately there are plenty of professional services that can help you cash in on your unwanted stuff. The best person for the job depends on whether or not you want to sell household items yourself and whether you need help hauling the items out of your home. At the end of the day, your budget and schedule will help you determine whether you should hire an appraiser, an estate liquidator, or a junk removal service.

Let’s take a look at which pros are equipped to handle appraising, hauling, and selling household items, their respective processes, and which one you should pick. 

Benefits of Hiring an Estate Liquidator

Estate liquidation companies organize your household items and host estate sales—usually directly on the property—so the public can buy everything in your house and sometimes even the house itself. If you’re dealing with a large number of items or high-value belongings, an estate liquidator or estate sale company can streamline the process and take the stress of your shoulders. Plus, they typically have an established network of buyers, which means your items are likely to sell faster. 

They also dispose of any remaining objects and receive a commission of between 30% to 40% of everything sold at the estate sale. Some estate liquidators also include valuation services for an additional fee, but not all, so you may need to hire an appraiser near you as well.

Can I Haul and Sell My Household Belongings on My Own?

While it’s possible to remove and sell all of your old belongings on your own, that’s a big undertaking and a serious time commitment, especially if you’re on a tight deadline. If you DIY this project, we recommend involving family and friends to lessen your load. Work in teams to sort through the junk and the valuables, then prepare to research the appropriate price of each item. It may take a bit of time, but you can usually determine the value of objects or furniture by researching it online. 

However, it’s usually worth it to hire a property or jewelry appraiser near you for this task because they’ll tell you exactly how much to price each item. From there, you can list your objects on online auction sites or even plan an old-fashioned yard sale to make sure every object finds its new forever home.  

Can I Hire an Appraiser for This Project?

State-licensed home appraisers compare properties to similar ones on the market to determine a fair price. While they can help you determine your home’s value, they do not appraise individual items or objects. If you want to have a particular item or furniture piece appraised to set a fair asking price, find a local appraiser who specializes in that type of object to help you.

In addition, neither home or object appraisers will haul or sell your household belongings for you—only determine their current market value.

Can I Hire a Junk Removal Service for This Project?

A number of junk removal and hauling services also offer to sell your goods on commission. Unlike an estate liquidator, they will remove objects from your home for a fee, sell the usable objects on their own time, and take 20% to 30% of the profits before giving you the rest. 

Junk hauling companies charge $50 to $150 per hour to move small objects and $130 to $360 per hour for large objects. While junk hauling companies are ideal for removing and selling your household goods, the service doesn’t typically include appraisals.

How Does Each Pro Sell Household Items? 

Though several types of pros and companies provide similar services, each one does so in a slightly different way. 

Estate Liquidator

An estate liquidator professional comes to your home, appraises your possessions (and your property for an additional fee), and, at a later date, hosts an estate sale directly on site. This type of pro is ideal for homeowners who need hands-on help appraising and selling household objects.

Appraiser

Unlike the other pros on this list, an appraiser won’t get rid of or sell your unwanted goods. A professional appraiser will determine the current market value of individual objects or furniture pieces, and the rest is up to you. This type of pro is best suited for figuring out how to price  rare or high-end objects.

Junk Removal

You can hire a local junk removal service to pick up unwanted household goods, but you have to sort through your belongings on your own. Some, but not all, junk removal companies will then sort what you give them, sell objects of value, and take a small percentage of the profits. In most cases, junk removal companies do not appraise individual items.