Clearing a flat after a death: what to do
A death in the family or among friends is already a stressful situation. If the person’s flat also has to be cleared, this can quickly become overwhelming. We show you what to do when clearing out a home following a death and how a professional house clearance service can help.
A death in the family or among friends is undoubtedly a difficult situation and emotionally very stressful. In addition to coping with the loss, there are many organisational matters that relatives have to take care of, including clearing out the person’s flat or house – especially if the deceased lived alone. It is often particularly difficult for relatives to clear out a home because they have to carefully go through all of the deceased’s personal possessions.
From household objects to clothing – all personal items that were of great importance to the deceased person. However, house clearance can also be an important step in the grieving process – it allows loved ones to let go of material things and make space for memories.
The legal basis for clearing a flat in the event of a death
In the event of a death in Switzerland, legal succession takes effect. As a rule, these are direct relatives such as spouses, children or parents. All claims and obligations of the deceased are transferred to their heirs. This also includes the tenancy, as this does not automatically expire in the event of death. This means, among other things, that the tenancy agreement is transferred to the heirs and they must pay the outstanding monthly rent. To avoid incurring unnecessary costs, heirs should cancel the deceased’s existing tenancy agreement within the statutory notice period of three months to the next possible cancellation date.
The cancellation dates vary from canton to canton – there are usually two dates per year, one in spring and one in autumn. If other contractual agreements are stipulated in the tenancy agreement (e.g. minimum rental period of two years), these do not apply in the event of the death of a tenant and the flat can be terminated on the next possible cancellation date in accordance with the statutory notice period of three months. There is also the possibility of proposing new tenants to the landlord – this can shorten the notice period considerably.
It should be noted that all heirs must sign in order for the cancellation to be legally binding.
Carrying out a flat clearance yourself
To cope with grief, it can be helpful for some relatives to clear the deceased person’s home and household themselves. This allows you to go through all the items again at your leisure and decide what to keep or dispose of. Would you like to clear the flat yourself? It’s best to draw up a checklist in advance so that you can clear out the flat or house quickly and in a coordinated manner:
Find out about the cancellation period for the flat and by when the flat must be vacated. Are there any other important dates, such as upcoming renovation work, collection days or opening hours for the disposal of bulky waste, that you should take into account in your schedule? You should also consider taking a few days off work so that you have enough time to clear out the flat.
Allow yourself enough time to look through and sort valuable items and important documents. There are often keepsakes such as photo albums that you like to look through again and lose track of time. Think about what you want to keep, sell, give away or dispose of. Discuss this with the other heirs so that there are no disputes later on if certain items belonging to the deceased were sold or disposed of prematurely.
When clearing out, make sure that you have already sorted everything as well as possible. This will save you time later on when disposing of the waste and your helpers will know exactly what to do. For example, you can put all the furniture you want to sell in one room – things for disposal in another room, etc.
Furniture in good condition or other household items are often easy to sell online. If there are already new tenants for the flat or house, you can ask whether they would like to have certain things.
Tip: Be sure to ask a charitable organisation such as a second-hand shop – they sometimes collect the furniture directly from your home and sell it on at fair prices. However, you will not usually receive any proceeds from the sale as you are donating the furniture to the second-hand shop.
Pay attention to the following points during disposal:
- You can take electrical appliances, lamps and scrap metal to a recycling centre free of charge.
- Bulky items such as large furniture, carpets or mattresses can be taken to a waste disposal centre – disposal is subject to a charge and is usually based on material and weight.
- You can take the clothes to a clothing collection point, such as a TEXAID clothes bin – the bags for this are regularly sent out by post. Alternatively, you can also use a normal tear-proof bag.
Arrange a professional house clearance
Clearing a loved one’s home not only involves a lot of work, but can also be an emotional challenge for the bereaved. In this case, you can hire a professional company such as a removal company to clear out the home. You can find relevant information and support on the topic of moving here. We recommend obtaining and comparing several offers – agreeing on a fixed price for the apartment clearance is often worthwhile. As a rule, the price depends on the size of the flat, the accessibility/surroundings of the property (e.g. lift available) and the type of items to be disposed of (e.g. additional costs incurred for professional disposal).
It may be worth going through the household contents yourself before the professional house clearance and sorting out what you want to keep and what not. This means you can ensure that nothing is disposed of unintentionally, but it can also affect the price of the house clearance. In any case, you should carry out an on-site inspection with the service provider beforehand so that you can discuss together what can be disposed of and taken away or what is for sale.
If the emotional burden is too great, you can also have a professional house clearance carried out without having to go through the flat again yourself. In this case, the company will clear out the entire household and dispose of all of the items. However, there are also companies that identify valuable items during a house clearance and also organise their sale.
Store items
You can’t part with certain things yet, but don’t have room for them in your home? Then you can also store them temporarily in a self-storage box. This will give you more time to think about the remaining belongings. At Zebrabox, you can easily and flexibly obtain a storage unit for temporary storage. With our volume estimator, you can easily find out approximately how much storage space you need. Have you since made space at home and no longer need the storage unit? Then you can cancel it quickly and easily. If you ever need a storage unit again in the future, we will be sure to find a free space for you with our locations throughout Switzerland.