Spring cleaning is upon us, and you’ve probably already started. One huge aspect of spring cleaning is purging your home of all of the junk and unneeded things. Going through room by room, you’ve probably managed to collect a large pile of odds and ends that you’ve decided you no longer need and don’t serve a purpose in your home. So, what do you do with all of this clutter? Chances are, you’ve got a box or bag of some kind that you’ve used to store these items, with the promise of “donating” them. This box just collects dust and sits in your house or garage until you finally get the motivation to take it to your local thrift store. But what’s really the best thing to do with all of that clutter?

Donate to a womens or homeless shelter

If you have clothing or personal hygiene products that you are getting rid of, consider donating them to a womens shelter or a homeless shelter directly, instead of taking them to your local thrift store. This way, your items are going to directly benefit the people who really need them, rather than being available to purchase by the general public.

Find a secondhand store to sell to

Another option, especially when it comes to clothing items, you can find a store that will accept your gently used clothing and will pay you a small amount. Stores like Uptown Cheapskate, Plato’s Closet, and Buffalo Exchange are just a few! There are definitely some stores in your area that you could find to sell your gently used clothes to.

List items for sale on Facebook or Craigslist

Another option for the larger things you need to get rid of, is to list them for sale on yardsale sites, such as the Facebook marketplace. This way, you won’t have to leave your house to get rid of them, and you can make a small profit on some of the things that you’re getting rid of.

Find a thrift store that has good values to donate to

There’s nothing wrong with finding a thrift store to donate your items to, just make sure that you’ve found a thrift store that has good values and donates a percentage of their proceeds to a cause that you support.