How To Make The Most Money While Disposing Of The Junk In Your Deceased Relative's Yard

Posted on: 20 March 2017

If you are the executor of the estate of a deceased relative and you must clear their home's yard of generations of junk, then you are probably feeling very overwhelmed. While you are right to feel this way, the good news is that the situation is much more manageable than you might first believe. In addition, you might be surprised to learn that there may be some money to be made for the estate by selling items found in those piles in the yard!

Follow these steps to get the yard cleaned up and make the most money you can during the process:

Step 1: Rent a Large Trash Dumpster and Remove All Trash First

Since the yard you are cleaning up is bound to have plenty of items that need to be placed in a trash dumpster, the best thing you can do is rent a roll-off dumpster and have it placed in the yard. Walk through the yard and toss into the dumpster anything that is not resellable or recyclable. This will free up a lot of space so you can get to work on other aspects of the cleanup project. 

Step 2: Call a Local Automotive Buyer if You Have Old Cars in the Yard

If your deceased relative's yard has old cars or motorcycles sitting in it, then you should contact a local used car buyer to come out and make offers on any vehicles that they are interested in buying. Additionally, if you have classic vehicles that are not running, then they can refer you to someone who appraises and buys this type of car.

If the cars in the yard end up being bound for the local scrap yard, you can often get the cars towed in exchange for their value in scrap. This is a win-win because the scrap yard makes a bit of money on the steel and you get free labor to help clean up the yard.

Step 3: Recycle Other Metal Items at Your Local Recycling Center

Finally, any other items that you find that are made of metal can be recycled at your local recycling center. The recycling center will take old car parts such as radiators, plumbing fixtures and pipes, and even old metal children's swingsets. Recycling all of the metal items rather than putting them into the trash dumpster helps to save the earth and it also will pay you a bit of money for the estate. 

To learn more, contact a company like American Northwest Recycling.

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