I feel like I’ve been talking about decluttering and cleaning stuff out of your house for a while now–but I have to keep reminding myself that it’s a goal or I may neglect to do it myself! Before you can really think about getting rid of stuff you have, you’ve got to go through the process of determining what you’re keeping and what you are getting rid of. This can be broken down into things you still need, things you want to sell, things to donate and things to throw out.

Once you’ve figured out what you’re getting rid of, you have to determine how exactly you will distribute it into the world. So here’s a list of great places to help you get rid of stuff around your house.

1. Take it to a consignment shop

   If you have nice clothes and other items (especially stuff with designer labels), you may be able to make some decent money by taking your clothes to a resale or consignment shop. The shop will generally take a large portion of the sale themselves, but they are doing all the work for you. Some will suggest prices for you, others will just sell it for whatever they can get — so do be sure that you know what the policies are before you start handing over your merchandise, thinking you’re about to become rich.

2. Sell it on half.com, Amazon, etc

   People get rid of all sorts of things via online venues. Amazon and half.com are great for things like books, DVDs and video games, but don’t feel like you have to price your items at 1 cent a piece just to get rid of them. It may take some time to sell these things, but it can be done if you don’t mind packing things up and mailing them out in a timely fashion.

3. Put it on Craigslist or in the classifieds

   People list anything and everything on Craiglist, and I especially like looking for furniture deals in there. Just be sure to include a decent photo or two of what you are selling so that you can get some serious offers. And don’t fall for the scams. If someone says they will send you the money and a friend will come pick it up, be leery. Either get the cash in hand before they schedule a pickup or make them pay upon pickup. No payments afterwards or you’ll probably never see your money.

4. Have a garage sale

   Garage sales can be a lot of work, but you can also bring in quite a bit of money without having to cart your stuff all over the world. Either label every item individually or use a color coded label system for certain items. Mystery grab bags with stuff for the kids or other small household items and trinkets often do really well. Consider getting a neighbor to schedule a garage sale at the same time so you can capitalize on traffic — and have some extra helpers on hand if you can to manage the crowds. Tell them to look at things also from time to time as if they are interested to buy them. Whenever I start looking at something in a store or a garage sale and put it down, someone nearby is almost certain to snatch it up and purchase it before I can change my mind. People will show up earlier than you announce the sale! Also, don’t put your lowest desired price on the stickers — people want to haggle. But they also don’t want to have to ask what everything costs either.

5. Host a swap meet

   This is along the same lines as a garage sale, but you’re not exchanging any money — just goods. If you have a bunch of friends who are renovating houses, get together and trade out materials that no one needs anymore. Or have a book swap. Clothing swaps are also quite popular, for both adults and children. It’s a great way to get rid of the things you no longer need, but you can also get something useful in return.

6. Auction it off on ebay, through an auction-house, over your blog, etc

   When dealing with high-ticket items and name brand goods, an auction site is often the best way to go. Or if you are planning to sell off pretty much everything you own, an auction house that comes out and puts on the auctioneers show may be very effective. You generally get more than at a garage sale, plus you have

7. Put it on Freecycle

   Sometimes I just cannot believe the stuff I see on Freecycle, even in Germany. I have gotten a substantial collection of canning jars of all sizes from Freecycle, just by asking. People really do want some of your junk. So before you just toss it in the garbage, get a free account on Freecycle in your area and see if there is someone who is willing to come pick up your old books, plants in your yard you no longer want or that old baby furniture.

8. Donate it

   Goodwill and Salvation Army are the common ones, but did you know you can donate building materials to Habitat for Humanity? Or what about excess pet supplies or your old floppy disks? Pet fur and human hair? There are nonprofit organizations all over the US that have sprung up in the last few years which take in things that people no longer want and reuse or refurbish them to be used by others in need. So just google whatever you are trying to get rid of and you’ll likely be amazed at what people are willing to take off your hands.

9. Repurpose it

   Did you know I was going to say this in here somewhere? I know it’s not the most usual way to get rid of something — but I absolutely feel that if you determine something is useless but suddenly find a new life for it thanks to brilliant people online, then it’s absolutely worth it to make it into something for yourself to use, or even to give away as a gift.

10. Trash it

    This is at the bottom of the list for reason. The trash dumps of the world are far too full as it is — so if you can find someone else who wants your junk and can use it well, I full support giving it away before you just trash it. Two of our neighbors were elderly twin women who decided to move into our local nursing home when it was finished. They hired a crew to come in and clean out their house — and they filled up a 10 ton dumpster with the furniture which they broke down into smitherines so it would fit neatly in the bin. It might not have been the nicest furniture in the world, and maybe no one on earth would have wanted it — but I don’t even think they tried to get rid of it themselves which really bummed me out. Some other neighbors also threw away several hundred canning jars because they were “old.” The thought of putting up a sign for someone to just come take them off their doorstep never even occurred to them. So just remember the old saying, “Your trash may be someone else’s treasure!”

What do you do with the things you have decided to get rid of in your house? Do you constantly have a bin system going somewhere of things to sell, donate and trash?