The Martha's Vineyard Estate Cleanout Checklist

Clearing a family home is a job nobody wants and everybody eventually gets. Here's the practical order of operations, from a crew that does this work regularly - and respectfully.

Step 1: Legal before physical

Before anything leaves the house, confirm who has authority - the executor or personal representative - and whether the estate is in probate, because in some situations items shouldn't be removed or distributed yet. When in doubt, one call to the estate's attorney saves enormous grief later.

Step 2: The document sweep

Search everywhere paper hides - desks, filing boxes, coat pockets, books, even the freezer: wills, deeds, titles, insurance policies, bank and investment records, keys, jewelry, cash, and photographs. Do this pass yourself or with family before any outside help touches the house. And tell your cleanout crew to flag anything that looks important - a good one does this by default; it's step one of how we run cleanouts.

Step 3: Sort with a system, not by wandering

Four categories, labeled zones: Keep / Family / Donate-Sell / Dispose. Decide each item once, not repeatedly. For family distribution across households - common when heirs live off-island - photos and a shared list settle most of it without another ferry trip.

Step 4: Value check before the dumpster

Vineyard houses hide value: art, nautical antiques, tools, first editions, mid-century furniture. Anything plausibly significant gets a photo to an appraiser or auction house before it's classified. Ten minutes of photos has paid for entire cleanouts.

Step 5: Donation - the island way

Usable furniture and household goods should stay on the island where they're needed. Island thrift shops and community organizations can take good-condition items, keeping usable goods on-island where possible. We donate where we can on our cleanouts.

Step 6: The clear-out itself

Whole houses typically take one to three days once decisions are made. Off-island family: this whole process can run remotely - video walkthrough first, one clear quote for the whole job before work begins, photo updates at every stage, and a broom-swept finish for the listing photos.

For realtors

The sequence that sells is cleanout → cleaners → photographer. We quote from a lockbox walkthrough and coordinate directly with your timeline - see partners.

Facing a house full of decisions? Call or text (970) 376-8687. We'll walk it - in person or by video - and give you one clear quote before anything moves. Respect first, speed second, landfill last.

Get a clear quote before we start

Text photos of the job to (970) 376-8687. We'll look at what you've actually got, ask what we need to ask, and send back a clear quote before any work begins - the number we quote is the number you pay. Or call - a human named Bosko answers. Fully insured. Serving all of Martha's Vineyard, including Chappaquiddick.