SMOOTH TRANSITIONS

Description of Work: Helped sort through all of our boxes in the house main floor and the basement. Helped make decisions about what to do with things and figure out what things were of value. Took books to a used bookstore and got reimbursed.

Description of Work: My mother needed to move out of state and downsize from a home she'd occupied for 30 years. There was a tremendous amount of accumulated items, including a full-length attic filled with unsorted boxes of things from her childhood home. My sister and I both live out of state and were unable to take on this massive job by ourselves. Marti's byline is "Household Downsizing -- Move Coordination -- Estate Dispersal" and that's what we got. Her prices were extremely competitive with those from others I interviewed. Her fee schedule is clearly defined and she doesn't take "cuts" from things that are sold. No fees are added when she finds a buyer for an item. She is strictly paid by time. This process took place over 2-1/2 months, with Marti coming to my mom's house on a schedule that was sensitive to my mom's stamina. Marti educated us on things we hadn't considered and of which we had no knowledge. Items were screened and sorted for suitability for sale online, donation to charity, distribution to relatives or transport to the dump. This is as compared to others who suggested a one time estate sale over a weekend. Marti also brought boxes with her each day and packed items professionally with bubble wrap. My mom is a packrat and Marti had her work cut out for her in helping my mom let go of things. Marti helped my mom sort through so many items with high emotional and sentimental values and decide which to take, which to give to my sister or me, and which to let go of. My mom has now moved out of state and Marti has overseen the completion of the emptying and cleaning of the house. This was a huge job and Marti did it with compassion and professionalism. She works hard and fast, rarely stopping to catch her breath. I truly think that without Marti's help and guidance we would have been forced to just take load after load to the dump, because there was so much that we couldn't contend with it on our visits from out of state. (One OLD photo, pulled from a pile in a box, sold online for $1,100).