Read before you sell / Estate clearance and the family home

Sell the family home with its contents, before estate clearance

You can sell the family home without estate clearance. Get an appraisal first, and you can see whether it beats paying for clearing out. This page covers what to take with you, the link to renunciation, what to check when hiring a contractor, and the Buddhist altar, in order.

You can sell the family home without estate clearance. Get an appraisal first, and you can see whether it beats paying for clearing out
Take bankbooks, title deeds, photos and keepsakes. Furniture and appliances can stay
If you are considering renunciation, do not clear out. Disposing of contents may make renunciation impossible (Civil Code Article 921)
If you hire a contractor, check that they may carry and dispose of the contents (a municipal licence or commission) (Waste Management Act, Article 7)
Our purchase includes the contents and altar. You can start from outside the prefecture with photos

Clear out then sell, or sell with the contents: two paths and their order

Appraisal first, clearing out after. Compare by the money left in your hand

You can sell the family home without estate clearance (sorting a deceased person's belongings into what to keep and what to dispose of). There are two paths, and the one you choose decides whether clearing out is needed.

The first path is to do the estate clearance, then sell through a brokerage. If you sell to an individual through a brokerage (a real estate company finds the buyer and sells for you), clearing out is almost essential. The buyer will live there, and a house whose floor cannot be seen drops off the list. The clearing cost is on the seller, and running costs continue until it sells: property tax, fire insurance, mowing and snow removal (about ¥150,000 to ¥400,000 a year as a guide).

The second path is to sell to us with the contents. We buy directly as the buyer. We repair the house we buy without demolishing it and hand it to the next resident. We buy with the furniture, the Buddhist altar, the farm tools in the barn and what is in the kura left in place, and we handle the disposal. After handover (you hand over the key and ownership changes), we carry the items out on the same schedule as our work.

To be honest, our purchase price is lower than if the house sold through a brokerage. That is because we take on the repair cost, the risk that it does not sell, and the work of clearing out. In return, you do not pay for clearing out first, and you do not keep paying running costs until it sells. Compare the money left in your hand after subtracting those two.

The order is appraisal first, clearing out after. The appraisal (working out what we can pay for the house) is free and can be done with the contents left in place. After you see the amount, you decide whether to clear out and sell through a brokerage, or sell to us as it is. If you pay a clearance company first and then ask for an appraisal, you may end up paying twice. Even if you pay for clearing out first, our purchase price does not rise by the same amount. How our purchase works and how it differs from brokerage is in We buy vacant houses and kominka in Toyama.

A guide to clearing costs: look at how they are decided, not the amount

The cost of clearing out varies widely with the size of the house and the volume of items. We are not a clearance company, so we do not state a figure. Instead, here are the points for reading a quote. More detail is in Selling a cluttered family home without clearing it.

There are three main kinds of contractor. Junk collection takes away furniture and appliances in bulk, and the price depends on volume and number of trucks. Estate clearance sorts items into those to keep and those to dispose of, and the price depends on the number of people and days. Special cleaning (disinfecting and deodorising smells and stains that ordinary cleaning cannot remove) is quoted separately from clearing out.

Cost is driven by the volume of items (the number of trucks), the number of workers and days, and disposal fees. Building conditions also matter, such as whether there is a second floor and whether a truck can park near the house. Farmhouses in Toyama have a large floor area, with a barn or kura besides the main house. Before you hire anyone, check whether the quote covers only the main house or includes the barn and kura.

There is one more cost that does not appear in a quote: travel from outside the prefecture and days off work. Even if you hire a contractor, you usually need to come home at least several times: to be present for the quote, to sort items to keep, on the day of the work, and to check the result.

Take bankbooks, title deeds, photos and keepsakes. Furniture can stay

Even when you sell with the contents, there are things you will want to move first. But far more things can simply stay. If you are considering renunciation, read the next section before taking anything out.

What to takeBankbooks and seals, title deeds (registration identification information), insurance certificates, pension books, securities, cash, precious metals, photo albums, keepsakes. Bankbooks and insurance certificates are needed for the inheritance procedures themselves.

Where to lookThe drawers and lower shelf of the Buddhist altar, the top or bottom drawer of the chest, the attic shelf of the closet, inside paulownia boxes, tins and jars in the kitchen, beside the bed, desk drawers, locking handheld safes. Bundles of papers are usually found around the altar or in one drawer of the chest.

What can stayFurniture, appliances, futons, tableware, clothes, the contents of the fridge, farm tools in the barn, what is in the kura. The Buddhist altar and the Shinto altar can stay too (the ceremony is arranged as described below).

What we hope you will not throw awayTransom carvings (ranma), lattice doors, plank doors, paulownia chests, old beams. These may have value, and because we repair the house we buy and keep using it, the fittings of that house suit that house's work best.

A house can be sold even if the title deed cannot be found. A judicial scrivener (a specialist who handles registration procedures for you) makes up for it with another identity-check procedure. Many people give up a house without time to look through the albums one by one. When we enter the site, we set the albums aside, and either send them to you without disposing of them or keep them for you. Choose slowly once they arrive.

Kerosene left in the home tank, pesticide bottles and cans, and propane gas cylinders cannot be put out as household waste. We check the type and amount on site and discuss how to handle them. Please do not pour anything down the drain or onto the garden.

If you are considering renunciation, do not clear out first

If you are considering renunciation of inheritance (a report to the family court that you will accept neither the property nor the debts), do not start the estate clearance yet. Even if you mean only to tidy up, you may no longer be able to renounce.

Civil Code Article 921 says this: when "an heir has disposed of all or part of the inherited property", "the heir is deemed to have accepted unconditionally". In other words, if you sell or throw away a parent's belongings, you are treated as having accepted unconditionally (taken on the inheritance as it is), and you may no longer be able to renounce later. Selling the contents, handing them to a contractor to throw away, and withdrawing deposits to pay clearing costs are typical "disposal". A National Tax Tribunal decision explains that "disposal" includes not only selling but also destroying items.

The same article has a proviso that excludes "acts of preservation". Protecting a house or belongings from damage is not "disposal". Dividing keepsakes among relatives can carry the same risk as "disposal", depending on the item. How far you can go differs from case to case, and we cannot draw the line. Please check each case with a judicial scrivener or a lawyer.

The deadline for renunciation is three months from when you learn you have become an heir. During that time, you can have our appraisal with the contents left in place. If the house turns out to have value, it helps you compare renouncing with inheriting and selling. What happens to the house after renunciation is in A vacant house does not disappear when you renounce, and the order of what to do after inheriting is in What to do after inheriting a family home, and the deadlines.

Rules when hiring a contractor: check the licence to carry waste

If you decide to hire someone for the estate clearance yourself, first check that the contractor may carry and dispose of the contents (a municipal licence or commission).

Household waste is "general waste". Article 7, paragraph 1 of the Waste Management Act says: "A person who intends to collect or transport general waste as a business must obtain a licence from the mayor of the municipality that has jurisdiction over the area." In other words, a contractor who takes the contents of the family home and carries them away needs a licence from the municipality where the house stands (a municipal licence for household-waste collection).

The Ministry of the Environment explains that collecting household waste requires a municipal "general waste disposal business licence" or a commission from the municipality, and that an "industrial waste disposal licence" or a "second-hand dealer licence" is not enough. It also warns of cases of illegal dumping and of high disposal fees billed by unlicensed collectors. The National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan has also published consultations about extra fees demanded on the day of an estate clearance, and about items meant to be kept being thrown away.

Toyama City explains that household waste is collected by the city directly or by contractors on its behalf, and that it does not currently issue licences to collect and carry household waste. The list of licensed contractors that the city publishes is for waste from companies and shops. For a house in Toyama City, before you hire a contractor, ask them where and how they will dispose of the contents they carry out, and check with the city's waste section too. In other municipalities, you can ask the town or city hall's waste section. In the quote, check that it lists the work date, the scope of work, the conditions for extra charges, and the list of items to keep.

Buddhist altar and Shinto altar: we may ask you to arrange a closing-eyes ceremony

Even when we buy with the contents, we ask for your wishes before disposal on the Buddhist altar, the memorial tablets, the Shinto altar, photos and keepsakes only. Even from far away, you decide where the important things go.

For the Buddhist altar and the Shinto altar, we may ask you only to arrange a closing-eyes ceremony (the ceremony before disposing of a Buddhist altar). The name, and whether it is needed, differ by sect, and each family's relationship with its family temple differs, so we do not decide for you. First call your family temple and tell them you are giving up the family home and moving the altar. Please ask the temple directly about the donation and the date. If you do not know the temple, or it is too far to ask, let us know and we will think about how to proceed together. We carry out and dispose of the altar after the ceremony.

Memorial tablets (ihai) are handled in many ways: moved to your home, left with the family temple, remade as small tablets, or placed in perpetual memorial care. The family temple can tell you how your sect handles them.

How our purchase works: from photos to handover, even from outside the prefecture

This is the flow when we buy with the contents. Even if you live outside the prefecture, in most cases you need to return home zero times or once. If we ask you to come once, we tell you the reason and the date first.

1. Send photos and the locationSend photos of the family home and its address on LINE. One from the entrance, one of the room with the most items, one of the roof and outside. Photos from before clearing out are fine. We reply with a rough range of the amount.

2. Post the keyWe check the site ourselves. You do not need to be present.

3. We send photos of the contentsWe photograph the amount and kinds of contents room by room and send them to you. If we find what look like valuables or documents, the altar and memorial tablets, or albums, we send those photos separately.

4. You mark what to keepLooking at the photos, you mark them "keep", "send to my brother" or "fine to dispose of". We send what you decide to keep before handover, or hold it for you.

5. Written amount, and contractWithin one week of the site survey, we tell you in writing the amount and why it is that amount. The contract can be exchanged by post. If inheritance registration (the procedure of transferring title from the deceased) is not finished, we introduce a partner judicial scrivener. Handover is possible in as little as 2 weeks after the site survey.

6. After handover, we carry out the contentsWe carry out the contents on the same schedule as the demolition part of our work. You do not need to be present.

The appraisal and site survey are free. Because we buy directly, there is no brokerage fee (the fee paid to a real estate company). If you are not happy with the amount, you may decline. The steps for going ahead without returning home are in How to sell a Toyama family home without returning.

FAQ

Can I sell without doing the estate clearance?＋−

Yes. Our purchase goes ahead with the contents left in place. Furniture, appliances, the Buddhist altar, farm tools in the barn and what is in the kura can all stay. We carry them out after handover, together with our own work. Just tell us first about things you want to keep, such as bankbooks, title deeds and photos.

Is the cost of estate clearance subtracted from the purchase price?＋−

Mostly no. We buy the house to repair and use it, and we carry out the contents in the same step as the demolition work. If there is so much that people cannot enter the house, or special cleaning is needed, we count that as repair cost, but we will show you the breakdown. Even if you pay for clearing out first, that amount is not added to our purchase price.

What should I do about the Buddhist altar?＋−

You can leave it as it is. We may ask you only to arrange a closing-eyes ceremony (the ceremony before disposing of a Buddhist altar). The name, and whether it is needed, differ by sect, so first tell your family temple that you are giving up the family home. If you do not know the temple, or it is too far to ask, please talk to us. We carry out and dispose of the altar after the ceremony.

I live outside the prefecture and cannot go to clear it out.＋−

You do not need to come. Send photos and the location on LINE and mail us the key, and we check the site. We send you photos of the contents room by room, and you mark what to keep and send it back. The contract can also be exchanged by post. In most cases you need to return home zero times or once.

I am considering renouncing the inheritance. Can I clear it out?＋−

Do not clear anything out until you have decided whether to renounce. If you "dispose of" inherited property, you are deemed to have accepted the inheritance unconditionally, and you may no longer be able to renounce (Civil Code Article 921). Selling the contents, handing them to a contractor to throw away, or withdrawing and spending deposits are examples. Check how far you can go with a judicial scrivener or a lawyer. Our appraisal can be done with the contents left in place.

Sources

e-Gov Law Search, "Civil Code" (Article 921: statutory unconditional acceptance)

National Tax Tribunal, "Ruling of April 17, 2020" ("disposal" under Civil Code Article 921, item 1)

Courts of Japan, "Petition for renunciation of inheritance" (3-month deadline)

e-Gov Law Search, "Act on Waste Management and Public Cleansing" (Article 7, paragraph 1: licence for general waste collection and transport)

Ministry of the Environment, "Do not use unlicensed collectors to dispose of waste!" (in Japanese)

National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan, "Not what I expected! Contract troubles with estate clearance services" (in Japanese)

Toyama City, "Application and notification for general waste disposal business" (the city does not issue licences to collect and carry household waste)