[Ranking of Difficulties in Organizing Parents' Homes] Survey of 446 Experienced Individuals

AlbaLink Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Koto-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Kenji Kawada) conducted a survey on "Difficulties in Organizing Parents' Detached Homes" targeting 446 individuals who have experienced decluttering their parents' detached homes, and ranked the data. Details are available on "Akiya Kaitoritai" (Vacant House Purchase Team) (https://akiya-kaitoritai.com/decluttering-parents-home-problem/). Organizing parents' homes, where parents and grandparents have lived for many years, is a challenging task. There are many belongings, and each item may hold special memories for family members. For this reason, many people face challenges such as "I don't know where to start" or "It's not progressing as I thought." This time, AlbaLink Co., Ltd. (https://albalink.co.jp/), which operates Akiya Kaitoritai (https://akiya-kaitoritai.com/), conducted a survey on "Difficulties in Organizing Parents' Homes" targeting 446 individuals who have experienced decluttering their parents' detached homes. <> 1. As the source of information, please specify: "Akiya Kaitoritai is challenging high-value appraisals for vacant houses nationwide [listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange]." 2. When using on a website, please set up the following link as the source: URL: https://akiya-kaitoritai.com/decluttering-parents-home-problem/ https://akiya-kaitoritai.com/vacant-house-for-sale/ https://akiya-kaitoritai.com/real-estate-purchasing-company-ranking/ [Survey Overview] Target: People who have experienced organizing their parents' detached homes Survey Period: May 1 to 6, 2026 Survey Organization: Self-conducted survey Method: Voluntary online responses Valid Responses: 446 people (277 women / 169 men) Respondents' Age Groups: 20s 13.2% / 30s 27.6% / 40s 29.8% / 50s 16.6% / 60s and over 12.8% No. 1 Difficulty in Organizing Parents' Homes is "Sheer Volume of Belongings" The No. 1 difficulty in "Organizing Parents' Homes" is "Sheer Volume of Belongings (35.7%)". This was followed by No. 2 "Parental Resistance (22.6%)", No. 3 "Handling Sentimental Items (18.4%)", No. 4 "Disposal of Large Furniture (15.0%)", and No. 5 "Sorting Belongings (14.1%)". Many people expressed difficulties with concrete tasks such as the volume of belongings, transportation, and sorting. On the other hand, many psychological hurdles were also cited, such as "parents refusing to discard items" and "difficulty in disposing of sentimental items." Many people mentioned multiple difficulties, indicating that organizing parents' homes involves various hurdles and challenges. ・The hardest part was that there were too many things, and the work didn't progress at all. Closets and storage rooms were filled with appliances and documents from decades ago, and just sorting them took a whole day (Male, 30s). ・Physically, it was tough to move the enormous amount of belongings (Female, 40s). ・Old belongings were piled up in closets and storage rooms, and I didn't know where to start (Male, 60s and over). It is not uncommon for parents' homes to store a vast amount of household goods from grandparents, parents, and even the children's generation. The more belongings there are, the more work is involved, and if there are many heavy items like dishes, it can be physically demanding. Some people were overwhelmed by the sheer volume when opening storage spaces and felt like they "didn't know what to do first." ・My parents would say "I need this and that," but I never saw them use any of it, which was frustrating (Female, 30s). ・During decluttering, my parents resisted, saying "That's still usable" or "That was expensive," and I became exhausted from persuading and conflicting with them, feeling a sense of emptiness (Male, 40s). ・My mother wouldn't let me throw things away. She has so many clothes, shoes, and bags that she probably wouldn't need to buy any more for her whole life. Even if I check them and put them in a garbage bag, they'll be back in their original place after a while (Female, 50s). Many children's generation want to declutter and reduce items, but their parents or grandparents' generation refuse to let them discard things. This is caused by a difference in perception: "It's unnecessary for the child, but for the parent, it's an item full of value and memories." Many opinions were received about feeling mentally exhausted from persuasion and arguments every time they decluttered. There were also cases where strong opposition prevented decluttering from progressing at all.