House clearance
House Clearances are a form of service which can be a part or an entire house. Many people use a house clearance service because they may need a lot of items removing or looking to clear garages, lofts, sheds and basements.
What is the process?
The process is normally as follows:
- From your call or email a company representative will contact you to discuss the requirements of your house clearance job.
- Some companies will ask to see the property before they quote you. Others will give you an estimate based on what you tell them needs to be removed.
- They will evaluate the job and either give you a quote to remove the items or pay you for the possessions.
- Some companies will make an allowance for the household items and use that value to offset the labour cost of the house clearance.
- If they are successful then you can arrange a day to complete the job for you.
- Some house clearances can take more than a day if there is a large amount of household furniture and effects, sometimes when the occupant has been suffering from ocd or compulsive hoarding syndrome.
It is best practice to get a couple of other companies to have a look to get the best price possible. Always try to use a company that have a good recycling policy and actively re-use second hand furniture by donating to charity on your behalf.
Costs involved
When a house is cleared there are many costs associated with the job and vary depending on the items cleared. Many councils across the UK operate a strict policy which must be adhered to. Example items. These have to be cleared in a safe way.
- asbestos
- pesticides
- fluorescent tubes
- oils
- some paints
- some household and car batteries
- discarded electrical equipment like TVs and computer monitors, fridges and freezers
- discarded energy saving light bulbs (also known as CFLs)
- mattresses
- plasterboard
- car tyres
A standard house of 3/4 bedrooms with an average amount of household furniture and effects can cost anywhere between £650 and £1500 on average but can vary considerably based upon various factors such as, parking difficulty, high rise flats with only stair access, and high volume content within the property. There may be a garden clearance involved and this would incur additional charges. Garages can sometimes have large quantities of toxic material such as paint and garden pesticides which will also incur additional charges. The loft area can sometimes have large amounts of clutter and the house clearance company will have to take this into consideration when working out a quotation.
The Directgov advises that these items are put into your car and taken to your local waste management centre; also known as a 'tip' or 'dump'. Due to recent changes made at recycling centres nationwide there is now a charge for the disposal of plasterboard and mattresses, and these items have to be separated from the general waste. This extra charge has therefore been passed on to the client or person having a property cleared
Licensing
It is important that companies who operate a clearance service are registered waste carriers with the Environment Agency. The home owner can obtain this license by asking the business who is quoting for the job to produce one, or you can check the validity of the licence on the Environment Agency website.
In the News
Many exciting items have been found when a house clearance is performed. Frequently high value antique items are discovered and appeared on shows such as Antiques Roadshow and Bargain Hunt in the UK. One such item was a 1908 olympic programme found during a house clearance in Surrey by a local company, and made the BBC News 1908 Olympic Programme