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It’s normal to feel overwhelmed when you have to declutter your home quickly. Learn how to declutter your house fast with these simple tips and tricks.
I wanted to crumble into a heap on the floor.
They’d be here in 2 hours. I had been working on the auction every evening after work, and it showed.
I couldn’t let them see it that way. Something had to be done.
Clutter can build up in even the neatest of homes. Things come up, you get beyond busy, or ill, or just plain tired.
But inevitably, there will come a time when a thrill of panic rises up your throat. Why? Because you’ll have guests in your home for one reason or another, and you’ll have to figure out how to declutter your house fast.
Like that time when I’d spent 5 days in a row working 8 hours each evening on a charity auction… after I got home from my day job. My housework got away from me that week, and I had to figure out how to quickly clear clutter in my home. It worked for me, and it’ll work for you, too!
What to Expect
Before you read any further, I wanted to let you know what to expect from this post. Because if you’re looking to declutter your house fast, I know you don’t have time to read something that takes you down a dead end!
What I’ll Cover
The decluttering method I cover below is intended to help you get clutter out of the public areas of your home. As a result, it’s a great way to prepare your home for:
- Holiday gatherings
- Parties
- Out-of-town guests
- Club or committee meetings
- Or, when you just want to see results fast
Because this method is targeted toward people who don’t have a lot of time to declutter, it’s perfect for working women especially.
What I Won’t Cover
There are a few things that I won’t be covering in this post, and I want you to know that up front.
Deep purging. Decluttering is different than deep purging. To me, purging is a thorough and involved process, where you work methodically to make detailed decisions about each of your possessions.
Decluttering, on the other hand, is taking care of the low-hanging fruit. The trash, unwanted items, and out-of-place items that are easily accessible and easily dealt with.
How to declutter your entire house. As I said above, this post is about how to declutter your house fast in specific areas. I have a separate, detailed post on how to declutter your entire house in one day. I also have a free printable checklist that goes with that post, in case you’re interested!
How to keep clutter at bay. This is about a quick declutter of targeted areas in your home. I have another post on how to control clutter in your home that you might want to use after your fast decluttering session.
How to Declutter Your House Fast
Now that we’re both on the same page, let’s get talk about how to declutter your house fast!
By the way, if you love it, pin it!
Step 1: Gather Supplies
You won’t need a ton of supplies for this project. However, there are a few things that will make the project faster and easier.
- Trash bags
- Boxes for donations
- Boxes or tubs for temporary storage of undecided items
- Extra baskets and bins around your house to use for temporary organization containers
- Cleaning supplies
Supplies are out of the way… here’s how to declutter your house fast!
Step 2: Identify High-Impact Areas to Declutter
Next, it’s time to identify the most important areas of your home to declutter.
As I said above, this post isn’t about how to declutter your entire house in a day or in a weekend. Rather, it’s about how to quickly declutter your home for fast results or to prepare for visitors. As a result, it’s important to identify the areas of your home that will have the biggest impact in terms of getting decluttered.
Each home is different, but decluttering the public or high-traffic areas of your home is a great way to prepare for guests or special events. Some areas you might want to consider are:
- Entryway – To welcome guests into an uncluttered space, and make room for their belongings
- Kitchen – The kitchen is a center of activity in most homes, and decluttering it will reduce stress and make entertaining easier
- Living room – If you entertain or spend lots of time in your living room, decluttering it will create a more relaxing environment
- Bathrooms – A tidy, decluttered bathroom will help you start and end your day in a better mood and put guests at ease
Choose the areas of your home that you’ll get the most benefit from decluttering. What areas stress you out the most? Which parts of your home would you be the most embarrassed for guests to see?
Once you’ve identified the areas you want to declutter, you’re ready to start taking action.
Step 3: Declutter Your Home Quickly
When deciding how to declutter your house fast, the best strategy is to work quickly and methodically on one small area at a time. Follow the steps below for each small area, and move on to the next area once you’ve finished all the steps.
Remove Trash First
Get trash out of the way first. Old mail and magazines, recyclables, and items that are broken beyond repair should be removed and disposed of in trash bags. Remember to shred any documents containing your personal information.
Corral Items You’re Keeping But Need to Put Away
A good deal of your clutter will probably be items that you want to keep, but are not where they belong.
If an item’s home is within a few steps of the small area you’re working on, go ahead and put it away. Otherwise, group the items in a box, and put them all away at the end. Otherwise, putting lots of things away at once might cause you to lose steam.
Remove Items You Know You No Longer Want Next
The next step in how to declutter your home fast is to remove items that aren’t trash, but that you no longer use, need or love. Place these items in boxes to be donated to charity, given to loved ones, placed in a garage sale, etc.
Set Aside Items You’re Unsure About
As I said above, this lesson in how to declutter your house fast isn’t about deep purging.
Getting rid of items you’re on the fence about or that you’re emotionally attached to can be difficult. Because of this, you should box anything you’re unsure about, and schedule a time to decide on them later. This is about decluttering your home quickly, and those difficult decisions will only slow you down.
Put Away the Items You’re Keeping
Last, it’s time to put away the items you’re keeping – the ones you grouped into a box above. If items don’t yet have a home, you should do your best to make them a temporary, tidy home.
The extra baskets and bins on the supplies list above are great for providing temporary homes until you have time for more thorough organization.
How to Declutter Your House Fast: Conclusion
You might feel overwhelmed when you need to declutter your home quickly. However, you can make lots of progress, whether you have only a few hours or a weekend. Here’s a summary of how to declutter your home fast:
- Gather supplies
- Identify high-impact areas to declutter
- Remove trash first
- Set aside items you’re keeping but need to put away
- Remove items you no longer want; box them up to donate or give to friends/family
- Box up items you haven’t decided whether you want to keep
- Put away the items you’re keeping but need to put away
After you’ve decluttered, you might want to run through a speed cleaning checklist to clean your newly-decluttered spaces. But before you do… take a look around and breathe a sigh of relief at your decluttered space! Whether you’re
Want a free printable copy of my Whole Home Decluttering Checklist? Join the ShowMe Suburban community and get access to my cleaning and organizing resource library! You’ll also receive my free weekly emails, where you’ll learn simple habits and routines to keep your home clean and organized, so you can relax away from work without feeling the stress of a messy home. Sign up here!