My name is Harry and I am a hoarder

My name is Harry, or Harriet, and I am a hoarder

There is little that makes life more difficult for a seller than being a hoarder.

That’s because space in the home is the one thing that they are most likely to have little of. And everyone tells you that you that the way to present your home for sales is uncluttered, isn’t it.

Well, you don’t tend to find much uncluttered about the home of a hoarder.

If you happen to be reading this and a hoarder, please don’t feel you are alone.

The International OCD Foundation says that Hoarding Disorder (HD) affects 2–4 per cent of people around the world.

Yes, HD is recognized by IOCDF as mental health disorder where people have difficulty getting rid of possessions that are no longer useful.

The IOCDF says a diagnosis of HD requires all three of the following:

• A person collects and keep a lot of items, even things that appear useless or of little value to most people.

• These things clutter the living spaces and keep the person from using the rooms as they were intended.

• The items cause distress or problems in day-to-day activities.

For the HD home owner, in most cases, the living spaces can no longer be used as they were intended, and moving through the home may be challenging. Extreme clutter can lead to eviction, increased risk for fire, and impaired access to emergency services

Just to be clear, hoarding disorder is not the same as being a clutterer or a collector.

Clutter is described as ‘a large and disorganized collection of usually unrelated or slightly related objects piled together in spaces designed for other purposes. Clutter often appears in storage areas. Sometime it can extend to bench tops, furniture tops, on the floor or in hallways. Collectors typically keep their possessions well-organised, and often seek to display them so others can appreciate them. But sometimes collections can get away from you!

Simply collecting or owning lots of things does not mean someone has HD.

So, while it is not uncommon for our homes to get messy and/or cluttered at times, this is not the same as having HD.

However, while you may not have a mental health disorder, you do see yourself as a hoarder because you:

• Don’t like to throw away things that are cluttering spaces

• To the onlooker, your belongings appear to be in disorganized piles throughout the home

• Some spaces in the home are unusable due to clutter

• The prospect of moving, especially downsizing, makes you fearful

• You feel quite irrational about the ‘tidyup’ someone suggests your home might need before it goes on the market.

Most people go through periods during which they have trouble getting rid of things.

What you need are realistic expectations.

It is most certainly not as simple as renting a skip and throwing everything away. Your possessions are not trash. They are valuable to you, and give you comfort and pleasure.

Here’s what you need to do.

If your agent, family or a friend suggests that your hoarding habits may impede a successful transaction through your home not presenting at its very best, listen to them. Let them help you. And if the ‘decluttering’ process is too big for all of you, bring in the professionals.

Did you know:

There is a web site for clutterers:

clutterersanonymous.org