Live on Less: The Luxury of Clutter

Clutter is a luxury. All those tacky heirlooms, the ten years' worth of National Geographic magazines, the shoes that don't fit but you just had to have because they were on sale. These things all cost money at some point, and all needed resources in order to be manufactured. If you can afford to hold on to more than you need, and if your apartment is bogged down with things, take a moment to count your blessings.

Hidden Costs of Clutter

Now that spring cleaning is upon us, consider how expensive it can be to hold on to all that clutter. Perhaps the most extreme example of this is renting storage for your extra set of golf clubs, furniture you might need again someday, paintings your loved ones made that you don't have the heart to get rid of, and your fencing gear—you know, in case you decide take that up again. (Yeah, right). People are willing to pay for years to hang on to their precious plethora of stuff. The smallest storage space (5' x 5') for rent in my area is $39 per month, which is just under $500 per year—a lot of money if you plan to keep your excess stuff indefinitely.

On the other hand, Maxine Gautier, a professional de-clutterer and founder of Out From Under Organizing, says public storage can sometimes be justified. "Especially in the short term, you may need the storage space to de-clutter your home," she says. "You need extra space in your home to move things around." That said, try not to depend on public storage forever if you can help it.

Clutter has a lot of hidden expenses. Time is money, and the time spent looking for items in your clutter and keeping your place clean (or, at least, in some semblance of tidiness) may cost you financially. Maxine also points out that when people are unable to find an item, such as a hammer, the immediate need for one obligates them to buy a new one, leading to an expensive collection of hammers. If you de-clutter to organize your home, you can find what you need and save money.

Storage "Solutions"

Organizing and "life simplifying" magazines encourage us to buy lots of storage containers and furniture to get our clutter under control. This means spending more money and using more resources, increasing our carbon footprint. Even so, after your proudly 'ooh' and 'ah' at your new "place for everything and everything in its place" scheme, your clutter will manage to escape as soon as it's given the chance, since you never really got rid of it, it's just hidden away. When you add up the cost of "getting organized", it's not cheap—plastic containers (at $8.95 each for a 12 quart bin)' clothes hangers that hold six times as many clothes ($9.95 a pack); an extra closet rod ($8.99); and large, space-saver vacuum bags ($12.99 each)—and the clutter problem really isn't solved.

There once was an advertisement for Rubbermaid, picturing a family amassing stuff over the years. Finally, they were frustrated by the clutter, but the Rubbermaid containers tamed it so well that they announced in unison, "We need more stuff!" Don't let this happen to you.

Getting containers to hold everything, as long as they don't make you feel like you can now accumulate more junk, can be great, and they need not be expensive or even cost you anything but shoe leather. Plastic storage bins are often available on Craigslist in the free section, on the curb, or on listservs like Freecycle.org.

Money From Clutter

Storage alone is not enough, however. It's better to make a dent in your surplus stuff, as the clutter professionals suggest, maybe even make some money while you're at it.

Clothes are among the easiest items to sell to a secondhand shop, and, for many people, clothes are a huge source of clutter. Those clothes you never wear could be worth something at a vintage or consignment shop. Make sure they are in good condition before you sell them—clean and ironed, if necessary. Likely, you'll only make a fraction of what the items cost new, but better to make a few bucks and have someone else enjoy that little black dress than have it sit dejected in the back of your closet, taking up precious space.

For most non-apparel items, you're unlikely to get any money at a secondhand store, making online auctions like eBay a great alternative. Here again, don't expect to make much, but you never know—there may be a lot of lucrative interest in your painting of Elvis on velvet, after all. If online auctions aren't for you, Craigslist is a great local option and saves you the trip to the post office. If you're the Felix to your pack rat Oscar, try making a deal: you sell his excess stuff, and the money goes to his favorite charity. "Angel Pie, sell your collection of ships in bottles and we'll donate the money to the Red Cross to help earthquake victims." You'd be surprised: it can work like a charm.

Sell books and other items on Amazon or Half.com, eBay's little sister. If the parting book is out-of-print, it might fetch a significant price. If the book is new or as good as new, it might sell for nearly as much as you paid for it. Another area where freecycling comes in handy: save money on shipping expenses by putting a "wanted" ad on Craigslist for packaging materials. If have a lot of stuff to sell, the savings can really add up.

It's unlikely that you can sell every item junking up your home, and that's when you give away. Call charities, such as Big Brothers, Big Sisters, which will often pick up if you have enough to give away, or haul it to Goodwill or another thrift shop. Again, Freecycle and the free section of Craigslist are great resources, too, if you just want to get rid of stuff. Usually, the person who wants the item will travel to you, which is convenient and saves on transportation. Someone else, particularly a non-profit, may give a good home to the bike your kid outgrew. Your obsolete printer is out of your house, out of the landfill, and being refurbished for an inner city classroom.

A great freecycling option for parents is Zwaggle.com. By giving away items, you earn points to get items, but in the spirit of de-cluttering, take only what you really think you'll use. Adam Levy, Zwaggle's founder and CEO, says that one advantage his service has over Freecycle.org is that trading, giving away, and receiving can happen on a local or national level. "As a seller you receive a better value for your goods in a swap than you would in a cash sale," he says, pointing to the virtues of trading rather than selling. And unlike Freecycle, Craigslist and the like, Zwaggle provides guarantees on what you swap.

This is a great time to be a recovering pack rat. Thanks to the Internet, it's never been easier to sell items you used to have to just give away, and never easier to find someone who wants something you would otherwise have to just throw away. Everybody wins. You might get so good at de-cluttering that you are now able to rent space to hold other people's clutter. (But don't!)