House Clearance In Penicuik Case Example: Client instructions
In this case we were faced with the aftermath of a compulsive hoarder. It was his daughter that contacted us to say that her father had recently died and she was now the executor of his estate. She needed to sell the home so that she could divide the proceeds between herself and her brother and sister as had been indicated in her father’s will.
But her father had been a compulsive hoarder for at least the last decade, since her mother’s death. She had her siblings had tried to dissuade him, but nothing they said could make home change his ways.
The house was a two-up, two-down in a traditional late Victorian terrace and the whole property was absolutely crammed with personal effects, furniture and junk. There was a small backyard which was also full of rubbish and other detritus.
Our instructions were to clear the whole property, but to keep an eye out for anything that might be of sentimental or financial value.
Penicuik House Clearance Report
We arrived and started by making an assessment of the property. It was clear that this was a severe case of hoarding – the hallways and rooms were so full of things that it was actually quite hard to get into the house, and the backyard was no better. Although it was quite a small property, we could see that this job would take us at least two days.
We donned protective clothing including helmets, facemasks, safety boots and gloves. In cases like this, nicks or cuts can easily become infected, so it’s better to be safe than sorry. We started by clearing the living room and kitchen on the ground floor, which took us most of the first day.
With the ground floor cleared, we made a start on the backyard. Everything from there had to be carried through the house. We arrived bright and early the next morning and finished off the back yard. We then started on the upper floor and made good progress there, emptying everything out by the middle of the afternoon. We then gave the house an industrial deep clean from top to bottom.
Penicuik House Contents Disposal
We had kept an eye out for anything of value, and we found an old wallet with £500 stuffed into it. We gave this to the client who wanted to give us a reward. This we politely refused, explaining that it was merely part of our job.
Much of the contents from this clearance had to go to a recycling waste facility in Penicuik. We did manage to recycle a considerable amount of paper and glass. On most jobs we manage to recycle or reuse at least 90 percent of the contents, but this is often impossible in a hoarding case.
Penicuik Customer Feedback
The customer was amazed by the difference that two days of hard work made to the house, and was delighted with the results. She was also very impressed by our honesty in returning the money.