A chattel is a personal possession that you own and you can touch. You could take it with you when you go somewhere else. Therefore it follows you should be able to sell it, or give to someone so it becomes their own. However, there are times when you should not give a … [Read more...]
Hidden Secrets of Hoarding We May Not Know
All of us hang on to a few sentimental possessions, for which we have no practical use. However, we trim them down to what we have space for, and eventually dump things that once meant so much. But obsessive hoarding has much deeper drivers. We share the hidden secrets … [Read more...]
Neural Mechanisms Affect Hoarding Decisions
A report in the August 2024 addition of the Journal of the American Medical Association, delivered breaking news regarding compulsive hoarding. A team of researchers confirmed which brain regions can cause the condition. If neural mechanisms affect hoarding, then this … [Read more...]
Deeper Dangers to Compulsive Hoarding
There are deeper dangers attached to compulsive behaviour that lie hidden behind popular misconceptions, and anonymous posts on the social media. Some television shows and articles in the popular press have made an entertainment parody out of hoarding. We unmask the … [Read more...]
Managed Hoarding House Clearance In Six Steps
Your first visit to a hoarded house can be a real eye-opener, if you believe in neat and tidy homes. If you have a first visit coming up, prepare for chaos you may not believe. Especially if this has been ongoing for years. A professionally managed hoarding house … [Read more...]
Clearing Hoarded Homes in Housing Associations
UK National Housing Association published a landmark report into best practices for clearing hoarded homes in supported housing situations. They were concerned that enforced de-cluttering and deep-cleaning may ‘reinforce the situation’ and investigated other … [Read more...]
Disposing of Our Chattels After We Pass On
We worked hard all of our lives, and accumulated a house-full of possessions solicitors call chattels. Some one has the task of disposing of our chattels amicably after we pass away. This is not a pleasant duty, but it is something that must be done. The law will … [Read more...]
Hoarding Disorder Affects Families Too
Hoarding disorder is a persistent difficultly discarding possessions, because the person believes they are worth keeping. The condition can affect the person’s lifestyle to the extent they live in unhygienic, even unsafe conditions. However, hoarding disorder affects … [Read more...]
Tracking Down a Deceased Person’s Chattels
We start thinking more often about what will happen to our possessions as we age. Perhaps we should do so after we start raising children, because there’s no knowing when our time will come. Tracking down a deceased person’s chattels can be a painful experience for … [Read more...]
Should Hoarders See a Doctor?
Hoarded homes can be a real challenge when we arrive to do a RICS property valuation for a deceased estate. Sometimes we can’t even reach into some spaces to do a proper assessment. More than a few clients ask us whether they made a mistake to look past the evidence. … [Read more...]
