Downsizing & parents' homes
Downsizing, or clearing a parent's house: free pickup, at your pace
Forty years in one house means a workshop, a garage, a collection or three, and a family with not enough weekends. Send me photos as you go. I take the resale-worthy share free, by request, and I'll tell you plainly what a charity, the city, or a hauler should take — so the job has a plan.
Send a photo
Use the pickup form or text a couple photos to (505) 250-3804 with your neighborhood. Under a minute.
I confirm what I can take
I review every request myself and reply about what is a fit and the day I can come. Nothing is promised until I confirm.
Set it out
On the day we agree on, leave it on the porch or in the garage. You do not need to be home.
I haul it free
I pick it up at no cost and give it a second life through resale and reuse.
Before you ask — the honest limits. Abq Reclaimed is just me, and I run a few community projects at once. So free pickups are limited and entirely at my discretion — I can't take everything, and some weeks I can't do pickups at all. Send a photo and I'll tell you honestly whether I can fit it in; if I can't, I'll point you elsewhere. (Prefer to drop off? We can sometimes arrange that by appointment.) When I do collect, a few days later I send you a Reclaim Receipt telling you where your stuff went.
What usually has a second life in a long-lived-in house
- The workshop: hand tools, power tools, hardware, the vintage stuff that's worth more than new
- Electronics and audio across four decades — working or not
- Sewing machines, cameras, records, books (the good ones I'll buy, separately), collections of every kind
- Camping and sporting gear, bikes, instruments
- Small appliances, quality kitchen gear, genuine mid-century furniture
- Clean, wearable clothing and linens
Family first, then me
Keep what matters. Let everyone take their turn. There's no clock on my side — send photos of what's left whenever you're ready, room by room if that's easier. I'll tell you what I can take free and give you an honest list for the rest: Habitat ReStore for furniture, the City of Albuquerque for large items, a hauler only if truly needed.
How a clear-out works with me
- Send photos — wide shots of every room, garage, and closet. Don't sort first. I read every request personally.
- I reply honestly: what I can take free (the resale-worthy share), what a charity or the city will take, and what needs a paid hauler. You get a plan, not just a truck.
- Pickup by request, around my routes. I'm one person with a trailer and a forklift; I'll tell you what's realistic for your date rather than overpromise. Drop-off by text is the surest option for smaller loads.
- Afterward, a Reclaim Receipt: a note telling you where the things actually went.
Working with a senior-move manager, realtor, or estate attorney? Point them to partners.
Straight talk: Abq Reclaimed is one person, for-profit, and free because I resell what has a second life. I'm not a junk-removal crew and I don't pay cash — if something is genuinely valuable, sell it yourself and keep the money (my guide shows where). Pickups are by request and at my discretion, and they aren't tax-deductible.
Good to know
Common questions
Can you help while my parent is still living there?
Yes, by request — gradual works fine. Many families send photos of one room or the garage at a time. I will tell you what I can take each round and give you a plan for the rest.
Some things might be valuable. What should we do?
Sell those yourself and keep the money — I will tell you honestly which pieces are worth the effort and where to sell them. I take the resale-worthy middle free, and books I buy separately through sellbooksabq.com.
Do you take furniture?
Only genuine mid-century-modern pieces. For everything else I will point you to the Habitat ReStore, the City of Albuquerque large-item pickup, or a hauler.
Is it tax-deductible?
No — Abq Reclaimed is a for-profit reuse business, not a 501(c)(3). You get a Reclaim Receipt showing where the belongings went, which many families find more meaningful than a receipt.
Got something worth a second life?
Send a couple photos and I will tell you honestly if it is a fit. Free pickup across Albuquerque, by approval.
Request a pickup