A Better Estate Sale Experience
What Brings You Here?
Is the Estate Going Through Probate?
Our Probate Guide provides a practical overview of how probate may affect the home and its contents, including who may authorize an estate sale, when planning can begin, and what to consider before belongings are removed or sold.
This guide provides general information about estate sales during probate and is not intended as legal or tax advice.
BEFORE YOU BEGIN
A Few Things to Know Before You Start
Please Don't Throw
Anything Away
Items that appear outdate, ordinary, or insignificant may still have resale value.
Before you donate, discard, or order a dumpster let us take a look.
What to Identify
Before the Consultation
You do not have to empty drawers, organize closets, or clean the home before we arrive.
Family Photographs
and Keepsakes
Remove anything the family wishes to keep, including photographs, letters, heirlooms, and sentimental belongings.
Items You Intend
to Keep
Remove anything you do not want included in the estate sale. Once we begin organizing, we will assume the remaining contents are intended for sale unless otherwise discussed.
Important Papers
and Financial Records
Look for wills, trusts, deeds, tax records, identification, account information, and other personal or legal documents.
Items Promised to
Family Members
Remove or clearly identify anything promised to family or friends before we begin organizing and pricing the sale.
Prescription
Medications
Remove all prescription medications and dispose of them safely. Medications cannot be included in the estate sale.
Items That Belong to Others
Identify borrowed items, rented or leased equipment, medical devices, and anything belonging to a caregiver, tenant, neighbor, or third party.
If you are unsure of something, leave it in place and ask us during the consultation.
Frequent Asked Questions
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CHANGE IS HARD. WE MAKE IT EASY.
Planning an Estate Sale?
Planning an Estate Sale?
NEED AN ESTATE SALE?
At Bonjour Estate Sales, we have been helping individuals and families navigate estate sales throughout the Phoenix Metro area since 2013.
From organizing and researching items to pricing, staging, marketing, and conducting the sale itself, our experienced team manages the process from beginning to end.
Every estate is different. We take the time to understand your situation, walk you through your options, and build a plan around your timeline and priorities.
Whether you're downsizing, settling an estate, managing an inherited property, or simply not sure where to start, we handle the details so you don't have to.
We Handle the Details, So You Can Handle the Change.
Schedule A Free Consultation
YOUR SITUATION
You've Inherited
a Property
Inheriting a home often comes with both emotional and practical responsibilities. You may be sorting through personal belongings, maintaining the property, making decisions with family members, and possibly preparing the home for sale, all while continuing to manage your own life.
If you live outside Arizona
You do not need to travel back and forth for every step. Consultations, documents, planning, and many decisions can often be handled remotely.
If the estate is in probate
You may still be able to begin planning, but the person authorizing the sale must have the legal authority to do so. The estate's attorney can confirm when belongings may be sold and when the estate is permitted to move forward.
If several heirs are involved
Family members should decide what they want to keep before setup begins. Establishing a deadline for removing those items can help prevent confusion and delays.
Need More Guidance?
Explore what to consider before removing belongings, making repairs, or preparing an inherited property for sale.
WHEN LIFE BRINGS A CHANGE
There Has Been a Death in the Family
After a loss, making decisions about someone's belongings can feel deeply personal. Even ordinary objects may carry memories, and family members may not always agree about what should happen next.
When You're Ready
There is no expectation that you should begin immediately. When the time is right, we can explain what comes next and help carry the practical work.
Before the Sale
Your family will have time to remove photographs, documents, keepsakes, and belongings you wish to retain before setup begins.
You Don't Need to Prepare the Home First
You are not expected to sort, clean, or organize the entire home before contacting us.
Need More Guidance?
Learn where to begin when you are responsible for a loved one’s home and belongings and which decisions do not need to be made immediately.
WHEN LIFE BRINGS A CHANGE
I'm
Downsizing
Downsizing can be exciting, but deciding what will fit into a smaller home is often harder than expected. You may be moving from a long-time family home into a smaller residence, retirement community, or senior living community.
Begin With What You Want to Keep
Start with the belongings that are useful, meaningful, and appropriate for your new space. You don't have to make every decision at once.
Measure Your New Space
Knowing the room sizes and available storage can make it easier to decide which furniture and household items will fit.
Let the Estate Sale Handle the Rest
An estate sale can help find new homes for the belongings you no longer need while you focus on your next chapter.
Need More Guidance?
Learn how to decide what to bring into your next home, plan the timing of your move, and determine what to do with the belongings left behind.
WHEN LIFE BRINGS A CHANGE
I'm Managing an Estate or Trust
Serving as a trustee, personal representative, or executor can involve responsibility for both the home and everything inside it. You may be coordinating with heirs, attorneys, and other professionals while trying to determine what can be kept, sold, donated, or removed.
You do not need to understand every step before contacting us. We can explain how an estate sale may fit into the larger process and help you plan for the home’s contents when the estate is legally permitted to move forward.
If you Live Outside of Arizona
Many parts of the estate-sale process can be coordinated remotely. Consultations, documents, planning, and ongoing communication can often be handled by phone and email.
If Several Heirs or Beneficiaries are Involved
Establish who has the authority to make decisions and allow family members an appropriate opportunity to identify belongings they wish to keep. Clear deadlines can help prevent confusion and delays.
Before Belongings are Sold
Review the trust documents and identify any belongings designated for specific beneficiaries before the estate sale begins. These items should be distributed, removed, or clearly separated from the sale contents so the trustee’s instructions are followed and misunderstandings can be avoided.
You don't have to have the entire home
sorted before contacting us.
Need More Guidance?
Learn how legal authority and the estate’s circumstances may affect the timing and handling of the home’s contents.
WHEN LIFE BRINGS A CHANGE
Selling the Contents and the Home
Selling everything inside a home while preparing the property itself for sale can feel like two enormous projects happening at once. The belongings must be sorted, an estate sale organized, remaining items addressed and the home prepared for buyers, all in the proper order.
You do not need to coordinate each step alone. We can help you create one clear plan for the contents and the property, reducing unnecessary delays and making the transition from a furnished home to a market-ready listing more manageable.
Decide What Will Be Kept First
Before the estate sale begins, remove important documents, photographs, family keepsakes and belongings that will be retained. Identifying these items early helps protect what matters while allowing the remaining contents to be organized and prepared for sale.
Create One Coordinated Timeline
The estate sale, remaining-item removal, cleaning, property preparation, real estate photography and listing should be scheduled in the proper order. A coordinated timeline helps prevent conflicting appointments, repeated work and delays between selling the contents and placing the home on the market.
Complete the Estate Sale Before Listing
Whenever possible, completing the estate sale first allows the home to be emptied, evaluated and prepared before buyers begin visiting. The property can then be photographed and shown without crowded rooms, personal belongings or an estate-sale setup distracting from the home itself.
Need More Guidance?
There is more to consider when two major sales
involve the same property. Our complimentary
guide explains how to coordinate the process,
what should happen first and how a thoughtful
plan can make the transition easier from
beginning to end.
