Post Decluttering: What to do with Stuff You Don't Want

You’ve been busy decluttering your home. But now you may be wondering what to do with stuff you don’t want.

After decluttering, having a plan for how to get rid of the stuff you’ve decluttered is the most important step. You’ve got to get everything out of your home or you’ll find that all your work was for nothing.

What to do with stuff you don’t want

It’s likely your decluttering pile is a mix of … some will be easy and others require decisions.

The decision process can be the hardest part of decluttering. It’s not always easy to know what to do with the stuff you don’t want. After all you spent good money on it and you may even have some emotional attachments to your stuff.

To make it a little easier, I have a list of options that will make it much easier to get all that stuff out of your home.

Get rid of your stuff by offering it to family and friends

There may be some stuff you don’t want that would be a huge blessing to a family member or friend. When my oldest moved out on her own, the timing was perfect, I was decluttering several items that she was able to use for her new place.

When my kids were younger, I used to pass on their outgrown clothes to a dear friend who was always so thankful to receive them.

Here is the one caveat, before you give away any of the stuff you don’t want, make sure the recipient does want the items. The last thing you want to do is pass on clutter to someone else.

So go ahead and ask if your family or friends would like any of the stuff you don’t want.

Get rid of your stuff by having a charity pick it up

Large items like furniture can be hard to get rid of. What to do with the stuff you don’t want that falls into this category is to call a charity to pick it up for you!

There are quite a few veteran organizations that will actually come and pick up your large items.

I had a large solid marble dining room table. This thing took several large men to move into the house, there was no way we could move it ourselves. So we called the local veterans association and they came and picked it up. It was great.

The Salvation Army is another option that usually is willing to pick up the stuff you don’t want. Give them a call and ask if they will pick up the items you’re not sure how to get rid of.

Get rid of your stuff by donating it to your local church

Our church supports a ministry that serves women with children leaving domestic violence or substance abuse situations. There were large donation bins for anyone to drop off clothing and household supplies. The ministry representatives came once a week and collected the donations.

Many churches support local ministries that would be very blessed by receiving the stuff you don’t want. Call around and see if there is a local church collection supporting a ministry that would be near and dear to your heart.

Get rid of your stuff by donating to a local charity group

When you’re not sure what to do with stuff you don’t want, donating to a local charity is a great option. We don’t always think about donating to local charity groups because thrift stores are so easy to drop off at.

However, many animal shelters are happy to receive donations of old towels or blankets. Homeless shelters and domestic violence shelters are often in need of used clothing items.

Call around and ask charities that you want to support if they are accepting donations. If they are not, they may be able to suggest a charity that does.

Get rid of your stuff by bringing it to a thrift store

When you’re wondering what to do with stuff you don’t want, this is by far the easiest solution. Pack it all up and drive it over to your local thrift store.

Most thrift stores are willing to take a variety of clothing, shoes, household items, sporting goods, appliances, and pretty much everything you’re ready to get rid of.

Just make sure the stuff you’re donating is still in good to fair condition such that it will be useful to someone else. You don’t want to dump your trash on the thrift store employees to deal with.

Get rid of your stuff by placing it in donation bins

If you have a lot of clothing and shoes you’re decluttering, donation bins are another excellent option.

I’m sure you’ve seen them they are usually located in parking lots and look like the image above. The downside is that they generally only take shoes and clothing. On the flip side, they are super convenient because you can drop off donations 24/7.

The bins are usually marked with the organization they support. But if you want to support a particular cause, just google donation bins near me and the cause you want to donate to. You may be surprised by how many options come up.

Get rid of your stuff through a Buy Nothing Group

Nowadays I don’t do big decluttering sessions. However, I do regular decluttering maintenance to keep the clutter from taking over. This means I will have just a couple of items I want to get rid of.

My local buy-nothing group is my favorite way to get rid of the stuff I don’t want anymore.

If you’re not familiar with a buy-nothing group it is a Facebook group localized to your neighborhood. It allows you and your neighbors to post stuff they want to give away or are in need of.

Your neighbors comment on the item you post if they are interested. I usually just arrange a porch pick-up and the person comes by and picks it up.

One of the things I really like about the buy-nothing group is that it creates a sense of community in that you are able to help your neighbors. I’ve even met a few neighbors I would not have otherwise known.

Just search on Facebook for your local buy-nothing group. They will want to verify that you live in the area, but that’s it.

Get rid of your stuff by leaving it on the curb

If all other options fail and you don’t know what to do with the stuff you don’t want, put it out on the curb with a free sign. I literally did that this week. I put our old washing machine on the curb. It was gone a few hours later.

This is best for larger items. I promise that stuff will get taken.

Get rid of your stuff by taking it to a recycling center

Some things you declutter may be broken or not worth repairing. Because of the condition, the items may not be good for donating or giving away. This is where your local recycling center is a great option for what to do with stuff you don’t want.

Some recycling centers take old electrons and major appliances. There are also centers that will take clothing that may be stained or ripped and recycle it.

Just google your local recycling center and they should have a list of what types of items they take.

Get rid of your stuff by selling it online

I generally don’t recommend selling the stuff you don’t want. Selling your stuff takes a lot of work, time, and effort.

You have to take photos, list the items, write out a compelling description, and respond to inquiries, including those from scammers. Then you must either ship the item or arrange a safe place for the exchange.

Plus, before you even do all that you’ve got to spend some time researching how much each item is actually worth. Next, you have to decide whether it’s worth the time it will take to sell. Whew, I’m tired just writing all that!

However, if you do have some stuff you don’t want, but it has a high value, selling may be worth the effort.

You can list things on sites like Craigslist, eBay, Facebook Market Place, OfferUp, Next Door, or Poshmark. You can also look into a local Facebook buy-sell group. This is a nice option because it’s local.

If you’ve made the decision to try selling the stuff you don’t want, I have a strong word of warning. You must make sure you are actually going to follow through with selling all that stuff.

Far too often people hold on to things they are planning on selling only to find them still sitting around their home a year later. If you’re going to hold on to stuff you don’t want to keep, give yourself a firm deadline to sell them by and stick to it!

Get rid of your stuff through a consignment shop

Another option for selling your stuff is to go through a consignment shop. The nice thing about this choice is they will do most of the work for you.

You can make an appointment to bring your items. They will do much of the work for you in terms of pricing and, advertising, and handling all aspects of the sale. They usually pay 50% of the total sale price.

If you don’t have a local consignment store, consider using ThredUp. You mail them the items you want to sell and they will do all the work. After they’ll send you a check for the items that sell. They will recycle anything that doesn’t sell.

There are consignment shops that will buy your stuff outright. You can search for them online. Buffalo Exchange is one I’ve used a few times. If you have name-brand items or items that are currently popular this is a good choice. They make it very easy, they will make you an offer and pay you on the spot.

Get rid of your stuff at a yard sale

Much like selling online, yard sales are a lot of work. They can be very time-consuming and I generally do not recommend going this route.

That said, if you struggle to know what to do with stuff you don’t want without at least trying to sell it, this is an option. This will allow you to sell lesser-value items. If you have a lot, it can add up quickly.

You can also mark everything for free that doesn’t sell as you approach the end of the sale.

Again, a word of warning, don’t hold on to things because you might have a yard sale one day. Pick a date you will hold the yard sale and follow through with it. If you don’t have the sale donate all that stuff.

Get rid of your stuff by throwing it out

Sometimes what to do with stuff you don’t want is as simple as throwing it out. It is likely that some of the stuff you declutter is not in a condition to donate, give away or sell. Unfortunately, not everything is recyclable.

These may be items broken or damaged and not worth the cost of repairing. This stuff is simply trash; the best thing to do with it is to throw it out.