Estate Cleanouts
in Chicago & the Suburbs
Clearing out a parent’s home is hard enough without carrying it all yourself, and an estate cleanout in Chicago brings its own problems: alley loading, walk-up stairs, condo elevator rules. Junk Robbers helps executors, adult children handling things from out of town, realtors and downsizing families empty a home room by room once the family has taken what matters. We’re a family-owned Chicago company, here since 2021, with 450+ five-star Google reviews. We’re licensed and insured, and you get an upfront quote before any work begins. Call or text photos to (312) 521-0935 and we’ll send you a price.
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An estate cleanout in Chicago with Junk Robbers is priced by how much of the truck the home fills. That runs from a one-eighth load to a full truckload, and a single small item is quoted too. A one-room partial cleanout is priced the same way. A full house with a basement and garage may take more than one load, each priced on the same scale. We confirm the total before work starts.
Estate cleanout services we handle
Full estate and whole-house cleanouts
Once the family has its keepsakes and the house needs to be empty, our crew clears every level. That means the bedrooms and closets, the kitchen cabinets, the basement storage room, the attic and the detached garage off the alley. Nobody in the family has to carry a single box to the curb. When most of the contents sit in one part of the house, our pages on basement cleanouts, garage cleanouts and attic junk removal go into more detail. If you’re clearing a home for a reason other than an estate, see our Chicago home cleanouts page.
Partial cleanouts after the family takes what they want
Many families walk through first and claim the china, the photo albums, Dad’s tools and a few pieces of furniture. Mark those items with painter’s tape or a sticky note, or gather them in one room and close the door, and we’ll work around them. We take the rest: the spare beds and old mattresses, the sleeper sofa, and the dining set and dressers nobody has room for.
Probate and executor cleanouts
Executors often manage a house from a distance while the estate is still open. We take instructions from the executor, or from whoever they put in charge, and keep you updated by phone or text. Nothing gets touched until the price is approved. If the estate’s attorney needs the house left as-is until a certain date, we schedule around that date.
Pre-listing cleanouts for realtors
An empty house photographs and shows better than a full one. Realtors can bring us in to clear whatever the estate sale didn’t sell, the basement leftovers and the garage, so the photographer, inspector and buyers see rooms instead of contents. Our property cleanout planning guide covers how to sequence a cleanout around a listing date.
Senior downsizing and assisted-living moves
When a parent moves from a family home in Park Ridge or Oak Lawn into a smaller condo or an assisted-living apartment, only part of the furniture comes along. After the movers load what’s going, we clear what’s left, including the rooms nobody has the energy to sort. Senior-move managers can hand us a list of what stays, and we’ll follow it.
Estates with hoarding conditions
Some estates have rooms packed to the ceiling, and families often feel embarrassed about calling anyone. We handle these homes quietly and without judgment, and we can hold off on any room the family wants to go through first. Our hoarder cleanup page explains how these jobs run.
How much does an estate cleanout cost in Chicago?
Estate cleanout cost in Chicago comes down mostly to volume. We price by how much of the truck your belongings fill:
| Load size | Price |
|---|---|
| Single small item | Free quote |
| 1/8 truckload | Free quote |
| 1/4 truckload | Free quote |
| 1/2 truckload | Free quote |
| 3/4 truckload | Free quote |
| Full truckload | Free quote |
| More than one truckload | Each load priced on the same scale |
Other things that change the price:
- Volume. A tidy two-bedroom condo and a three-flat with a full basement are very different jobs.
- Stairs and elevators. A third-floor walk-up or a building with one small elevator takes more crew time.
- Access. A garage that opens onto an alley loads faster than a house with a long front walk and no alley.
- Heavy items. Upright pianos, gun safes and exercise equipment need extra hands, and some need to be taken apart first.
- Donation sorting. Separating donations from the rest adds time when the house has a lot of usable furniture and housewares.
- Timing. A rush start, when we have one open, can affect the price.
Single-item prices and current offers are on our pricing page. Whatever the size of the job, your price is confirmed before work starts.
How an estate cleanout works with Junk Robbers
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Send photos or book a walkthrough. Text photos of each room, the basement and the garage to (312) 521-0935, or set up a walkthrough if the house is full. Our guide to preparing for junk removal in Chicago lists what’s helpful to have ready.
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The family marks what stays. Tape, sticky notes or one closed room all work. If you aren’t sure about something, leave it, and we’ll ask before it goes.
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We confirm the price. You approve the total by phone or text before anyone lifts a box.
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The crew clears and sorts. We carry everything out from every floor, setting aside usable items for donation and metal and electronics for recycling.
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Broom-clean finish. We sweep the cleared rooms so the house is ready for the realtor, the cleaners or the next owner. If you can’t be there, we send you photos when we finish.
How long an estate cleanout takes varies from home to home. A lightly furnished condo can be cleared much faster than a full house with a packed basement and garage. Time depends on how full the home is, how much needs sorting for donation, and access such as stairs, alleys or condo elevators. We often have quick openings; ask about our next available time.
Do I need to be there?
No. Many executors and out-of-town family members aren’t on site. You can mark keep items, leave a key or lockbox code, and approve the price by phone or text. If you can’t be there, the crew sends photos when finished, and payment can be made by card through Square, Zelle or Venmo once you’re satisfied the home is cleared.
That’s useful when the family lives in another state or the executor is a busy attorney downtown. One person makes the decisions, and we keep that person informed.
If someone local can stop by, a quick walkthrough with the crew at the start is helpful, especially in a house where keepsakes are spread across several rooms. It isn’t required.
What happens to the belongings
Usable furniture, housewares and clothing are donated when possible to Out of the Closet, Mt. Sinai, Furniture Bank of Metropolitan Chicago and Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Metals, appliances and electronics are recycled where accepted, and the rest goes to proper disposal. If we find documents, photos, cash or valuables during the job, we let the family or executor know.
Donation
Older Chicago homes are often full of solid wood furniture, dishes and linens that someone else can use. When a charity will accept them, those items go to Out of the Closet, Mt. Sinai, Furniture Bank of Metropolitan Chicago and Habitat for Humanity ReStore instead of a landfill. What a charity will take depends on condition, so we can’t promise every piece finds a new home.
Recycling
Old refrigerators, washers and chest freezers from the basement go through our appliance removal process, and TVs, computers and printers go to electronics recycling where accepted. We don’t wipe computers or phones, so please remove or erase personal data from devices before the cleanout.
Documents, photos and valuables we find
Decades of mail, bank statements and family photos tend to turn up in drawers, closets and basement boxes. If we come across documents, photos, cash or anything that looks valuable, we stop and let the family or executor know so they can decide what happens to it. We don’t shred documents, so set aside any old financial or medical records you want destroyed before the cleanout.
What we can’t take
We don’t take hazardous materials: paint, chemicals, fuel, asbestos, medical waste, or propane tanks. Old paint cans and garden chemicals are common in Chicago basements and garages, so please set those aside for proper disposal. Our What We Take page lists what we can haul.
Working with executors, attorneys and realtors
That depends on the estate. Check with the estate’s attorney or the court-appointed executor before anything is removed. Junk Robbers works on the executor’s written instructions and can provide an itemized invoice and before/after photos for the estate’s records. We don’t give legal advice.
We can bill whoever is paying directly, whether that’s the estate, the executor, the attorney’s office or the realtor. Condo associations and property managers often ask for a certificate of insurance before a crew can use the loading dock, and we can provide one to the building.
We’re used to working around other people’s schedules. If an estate sale company is running a weekend sale, we can come in after it ends to clear what didn’t sell. If movers are taking a parent’s furniture to a new apartment, we can schedule around the move.
Chicago and suburban estates: what’s different here
Chicago houses shape how a cleanout goes. Behind most bungalows and two-flats there’s an alley, and loading from the back garage is usually the fastest way to clear a home. Walk-up three-flats in neighborhoods like Lake View and Rogers Park mean carrying every load down narrow back stairs, which takes more crew time. Lakefront and downtown condo buildings usually require a reserved freight elevator, a set move-out window and sometimes a certificate of insurance.
The bungalow belt on the Northwest and Southwest Sides has full basements that often hold decades of storage: workbenches, old freezers, holiday decorations and boxes from earlier moves. Out on the North Shore and in the western suburbs, homes in Winnetka, Lake Forest, Hinsdale and Naperville can have three floors, a finished basement and a three-car garage.
City garbage service covers houses and smaller buildings, but its crews don’t take construction or remodeling debris, and buildings with five or more units rely on private haulers. Setting a few large items next to the cart works for a single couch. A whole-house clearing is usually more than curbside collection can handle, which is why most families bring in a private hauler.
A recent estate cleanout
One recent estate job was a high-rise condo on the Chicago lakefront, with big windows looking out over a harbor full of boats. Belongings had taken over the main room. Clothing hung in every closet and was piled halfway up the wall on top of the bed, along with bags, reusable totes, wire baskets, plastic storage bins, vases, artificial plants and an electronic keyboard. The dressers and closet shelves were packed edge to edge, and a refrigerator was waiting in the hallway.
Our two-person crew cleared the living area, kitchen, hallway and bathroom. When they finished, the closets were empty, the carpet was vacuumed and the windows had a clear view of the water again. This is the kind of home where a family often doesn’t know where to start, and we handle it quietly, without judgment.
Why families choose a local, family-owned crew
Junk Robbers is owner-run and has served Chicago since 2021. The owners still talk with families directly, and the same team schedules and does the work. When you call about your mother’s house, you’re talking to the people who will be responsible for it. You can read more about us on our About page.
We’re licensed and insured. Our prices are upfront, the total is confirmed before work starts, and we often have quick openings; ask about our next available time. More than 450 customers have left us five-star Google reviews. Here’s what a few of them said:
“Ryan, our project manager, was professional, caring and succeeded in doing the best job they could possibly do at the fairest price point he could provide.”
“I had a very stressful situation that needed immediate attention and this Company came through for me!”
“Junk Robbers were wonderful….from quoting, to communicating, to arrival on time and of course removing my items.”
Estate cleanout areas we serve
We clear estates across the city and the North, Northwest, West and Southwest suburbs. Here are some of the areas we serve most:
North Shore
Northwest
West
South/Southwest
Chicago neighborhoods
Estate cleanout FAQs
How much does an estate cleanout cost in Chicago?
Most estate cleanouts are priced by truckload, from a one-eighth load to a full truck, and a single small item is quoted too. A packed house with a basement and garage may need more than one load, each priced on the same scale. Stairs, access and heavy items also affect the price, and we confirm the total before work starts.
How long does an estate cleanout take?
It varies with the size and contents of the home. A lightly furnished condo goes much faster than a full house with a packed basement and garage. A home with lots of donation sorting, a third-floor walk-up or a condo elevator that has to be reserved takes longer than a bungalow with alley access. We often have quick openings; ask about our next available time.
Do I need to be there during the cleanout?
No. Many executors and out-of-town relatives never come to the house. Mark what the family is keeping, leave a key or lockbox code, and approve the price by phone or text. If you can’t be there, the crew sends photos when the home is cleared, and you can pay by card through Square, Zelle or Venmo once you’re satisfied the job is done.
What happens to the belongings?
Usable furniture, housewares and clothing are donated when a charity will accept them, including Out of the Closet, Mt. Sinai, Furniture Bank of Metropolitan Chicago and Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Metals, appliances and electronics are recycled where accepted. What can’t be donated or recycled goes to proper disposal. Anything the family marked to keep stays exactly where it is.
Will you set aside documents, photos, cash or valuables you find?
Yes. If we find documents, photos, cash or valuables, we let the family or executor know so they can decide what to do with them. We don’t shred documents, so set aside any old bank statements, tax returns or medical records you want destroyed before the cleanout.
Can the house be cleaned out before probate is finished?
That depends on the estate. Check with the estate’s attorney or the court-appointed executor before anything is removed. Junk Robbers works on the executor’s written instructions and can provide an itemized invoice and before/after photos for the estate’s records. We don’t give legal advice.
Do you work with realtors, estate attorneys and executors? Can you invoice the estate?
Yes. We work with executors, estate attorneys, realtors and senior-move managers across Chicago and the suburbs. We can provide certificates of insurance to condo buildings, and we can bill anyone directly, including the estate, the executor or the attorney’s office. Realtors with a listing deadline can call or text us at (312) 521-0935 to set up a walkthrough.
What’s the difference between an estate sale and an estate cleanout?
An estate sale sells a home’s valuable contents to the public, usually through an estate sale company. An estate cleanout empties what’s left afterward, or the whole house if there’s no sale. Junk Robbers doesn’t buy items or run estate sales. We come in after the sale ends, or instead of one, and leave the home broom clean.
What can’t you take?
We don’t take hazardous materials: paint, chemicals, fuel, asbestos, medical waste, or propane tanks. These are common in older basements and garages, so please set them aside for proper disposal. We can usually remove everything else in a typical estate, from furniture and appliances to boxes of clothing and old electronics.
Do you handle condos and high-rises?
Yes. We clear condos and high-rise apartments downtown and along the lakefront, and we follow building rules. That usually means reserving the freight elevator and loading dock with management, and we can provide a certificate of insurance when the building asks for one. Let us know the building’s move-out hours when you request a quote.
Can you clean out just part of the house?
Yes. Many estate cleanouts are partial: just the basement, just the garage, or everything except the furniture the family is keeping. You pay only for what we remove, quoted upfront, and we can come back for a second round once the family has decided about the rest.
Which suburbs do you serve?
We serve Chicago neighborhoods and suburbs across the North Shore, Northwest, West and Southwest, including Evanston, Wilmette, Winnetka, Highland Park, Park Ridge, Arlington Heights, Oak Park, Hinsdale, Naperville, Oak Lawn and Orland Park. If your town isn’t listed, call or text (312) 521-0935 and we’ll let you know whether we can get there.
Ready to talk about the house?
When you’re ready to plan an estate cleanout in Chicago or the suburbs, call or text (312) 521-0935, or get a quote online. Photos of each room, the basement and the garage are enough for us to give you a price, and nothing happens until you approve it.