What Does A Professional Organizer Do?
Are you tired of tripping over clutter every time you get dressed? Will you lose it if you step on another kid’s toy or spend 15 minutes trying to find the can opener?
Getting organized can be overwhelming if you’re unsure where to start, and sometimes it’s worth calling in a pro. Understanding what a professional organizer does can help you decide if it’s the right move for you.
A professional organizer provides an expert viewpoint and unbiased eye to help you pare down your clutter.
They consider your lifestyle and habits to implement organizational solutions that you can maintain. An organizer will also take into account your budget when determining what storage supplies to use and how to maximize your space effectively.
Don’t live one more day with your clutter and the stress it brings. It’s possible to have an organized home that makes you smile and relax.
And if you need some help to get it that way, there are people with the skills and know-how to help you get the job done.
Do You Need A Professional Organizer To Help Clean Your House?
If you’re stuck in a rut and can’t seem to reach your home organization goals, you might need some assistance from a professional. Sometimes it’s hard to organize your stuff because it’s too personal.
You’re tired of dealing with it, and so you can’t seem to get started.
Or, maybe you really have no idea how to organize your belongings or make your space work. (Like maximizing the dead space in your corner pantry.) You’ve tried to clean up in the past, and it ends up back exactly how it was before.
For some people, time is a major factor. Perhaps you know what you need to do and how to do it, but your schedule is insane. You have no extra time to do the work, so you’re willing to pay someone else to do it.
Another possibility is that you have physical limitations that make it challenging to organize your home.
If these situations sound familiar, you should consider hiring a professional organizer. Professional organizers are excellent problem solvers who often give you ideas you would never have thought of on your own.
What To Expect From A Professional Organizer
When you hire a professional organizer to help you straighten up your home, here’s what you can expect to happen.
1. Consultation And Quote
First, the organizer will meet with you to see the space, assess the situation, and take pictures or videos for reference. They’ll likely ask you questions about how you use the space and how you’d like to use it.
Other things to discuss will be your budget for the project, timeline, and any special considerations. The organizer will also get a feel for your personality and organizing style to create a plan catered to you.
2. Present An Organizing Plan
After your initial meeting, a professional organizer puts together a rough plan of action. Sometimes, it might be immediate for a small project, and they’ll start the same day.
But for larger tasks, they might schedule a future start day with you to develop a comprehensive action plan.
The plan will include an estimated timeline and cost for your project. It will also lay out a framework of the process and the order the organizer will do things.
3. Pull Everything Out
When it’s time to start the actual organizing, the first thing a professional will do is pull everything out. This gives them a clear picture of the space they’re working with. It’s also a great time to wipe down shelves, dust out corners, etc.
4. Sort And Pare Down Items
It’s important to sort all your belongings into like piles to accurately assess what you have. It’s a lot easier to get rid of things when you realize you have five of them.
An organizer will help you go through your items and determine what should stay or go, providing gentle pushing as needed. They will set up boxes and bags for donations, keep, sell, and trash, and help you stay focused and calm.
5. Design Your New Space
Once your professional organizer knows what you’re keeping, everything else leaves the space. Now comes the fun part — deciding where and how to put everything back in a way that looks great and makes sense for you.
The organizer takes measurements and determines what types of storage containers to get. They’ll consider dimensions, your budget, and the items when designing your newly organized space.
6. Get The Right Storage Solutions
A professional organizer won’t try and force things to work with specific storage items. Instead, they let the best plan for you and your things dictate the most appropriate solutions.
Pros know what types of organizational supplies are available and likely know about things you didn’t know existed. They’ll make sure to get exactly what you need, not just what looks pretty.
7. Organize Things Into Their New Homes
With a plan in place and everything ready, it’s all about bringing the vision to life. This step of the process is typically the fastest. You’ve already done the tricky part — paring down your clutter.
Now, everything gets put in its new home and labeled as necessary. The organizer will take photos of the finished project. But they should get your permission before sharing before-and-after photographs on their website or other marketing materials.
8. Check-In And Tweak
A good organizer won’t consider the job done the day they finish the space. They’ll check in with you a week or two later to see how the space works for you.
It’s understandable that you might make a few adjustments as you live with your new space and use it.
If anything is feeling a little off, they’ll offer suggestions on how you can tweak it. For example, repositioning a hook for your necklaces or moving keys to an entry table drawer because you realize you don’t like looking at them.
How Much Does A Professional Organizer Cost?
On average, a professional organizer charges $50 to $60 an hour. However, their rate depends on their level of expertise, years of experience, and location. On the lower end of the scale, you can expect to pay closer to $30 to $35 an hour.
But for top experts in high-demand areas, the cost can reach $150 or more an hour. Depending on your budget, you can talk with an organizer about potential ways you can make the most of their time.
There might be things you could do ahead of time to save money. Some organizers offer virtual services for a lower fee, providing guidance and advice through regular check-ins as you do the work solo.
How Do You Find Help Organizing Your House?
If you know a friend or family member who recently used a home organizer’s services, you can ask them for the information. A Google search for professional organizers will direct you to pros in your area and show you ratings and reviews.
Other places to look are the National Association of Productivity and Organizing (NAPO) or searching home sites like Angi and Thumbtack.
But before you hire a professional organizer, consider the overall scope of your project. Sometimes, you might just need a trusted friend to give you a good kick in the pants to get you started.
For example, do you just need help letting go of things? Your friend could be the exact pair of unbiased eyes and the reality check you need.
Get Organized With A Pro
Organizing your house can be overwhelming if you don’t have time, have no idea how to start, or just don’t want to do it. So, you push it to the bottom of your priority list, and in the meantime, more stuff accumulates. (And so does your stress.)
A professional organizer helps you sort and pare down belongings and decide the best way to store them. Working with your budget, an organizer will come up with effective ways to maximize your available space.
They’ll design and implement solutions that work with your lifestyle, so that you can keep things tidy with ease.
Hiring a professional organizer is an excellent first step to turning your cluttered life around. They’ll provide savvy tips, an expert touch, and momentum to keep you moving forward.
Don’t put it off any longer. It’s time to say goodbye to the clutter and hello to your newly organized home.
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Stacy Randall is a wife, mother, and freelance writer from NOLA that has always had a love for DIY projects, home organization, and making spaces beautiful. Together with her husband, she has been spending the last several years lovingly renovating her grandparent's former home, making it their own and learning a lot about life along the way.
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