Why Seniors Should Declutter -- and How to Easily Do So

Getty Images There often comes a time when you have to part with some of your stuff. OK, a whole lot of it. Seniors, especially, have four compelling reasons to pare back possessions. 1. You Intend to Grow Old in Your Home Most people ages 50 and older want to age in place, AARP pollsters recently found. Adults ages 65 and older are even more likely (87 percent) to say they want to age in their current home or community than those ages 50 to 64 (71 percent). AARP's Home Fit guide tells how to prepare a home for aging in place. Decluttering and organizing your belongings while you are young enough to tackle the job allows you to: Access what you want easily. Enjoy memories stored in mementos, photos, letters, videos and other treasures you've been saving. Reorganize possessions for safe reach. Maneuver more easily through the home in case you become disabled. 2. You May Be Headed for Trouble Decluttering can help head off these problems that often force elders from their homes: Devastating falls. Serious falls can permanently reduce a senior's mobility and freedom. Reducing clutter opens up space and could reduce the possibility of tripping and hurting yourself. Hoarding. Hoarding entails "difficulty in discarding current possessions, urges to save items, and excessive clutter in the home," according to Psychiatric Times. Hoarding can be an especially difficult problem for older people living alone. 3. You Want to Leave Heirs a Lighter Load Estate planning, making a will and a trust and keeping them updated, is a kindness to your heirs. Likewise, decluttering now protects your loved ones from inheriting the burden of a home full of stuff. 4. You're Downsizing You may find, especially after children are grown, that you're weary of the cost and maintenance of the family home, and you'd rather move in with adult children or downsize to a smaller place. The problem: you can't cram everything you own into your new home. Get Started Paring back a lifetime's worth of possessions can feel overwhelming. Some alternative ways of thinking about the problem can help. There is, after all, no one way to declutter. Unless there's a deadline (you've sold your home, for instance), think of decluttering as a new habit rather than a mountainous job.