Charities That Do House Clearance (+ How Much They Charge)

If you need to clear a house of unwanted items, furniture, or rubbish, then an organisation offering house clearance services is what you need. You might have heard that charities do house clearances, and this is right… but be aware that it’s unlikely to be a free service. 

In this blog post, we will list which charities do house clearances, and what they are currently charging to do so. The prices might have changed by the time you read this blog post but were accurate as far as we could be in late 2023. 

It might come as a surprise to you, but charities to charge for a house clearance. How much charities charge for house clearances is detailed below where we found publicly accessible pricing details.

Before we go on, please be aware that Zero Waste Group is one of the leading house clearance companies, and you can quickly find out how much we charge by using our booking system. Please also note that we donate usable items from house clearances where possible to charities local to you. 

Charities that do house clearance

Charities that do house clearance can help people in need achieve self-sufficiency and independence. When someone books a charity to do a house clearance, staff from these charities will come to the property and remove unwanted items such as furniture, appliances, and other household goods. Unwanted items are then either sold in charity shops or recycled to raise funds for the charity’s mission.

Many national charities offer house clearance services that can help declutter a home, or clear a house after a bereavement or tenancy, while also supporting their work. Here are some national charities that offer house clearance services:

• British Heart Foundation: The British Heart Foundation funds research into heart and circulatory diseases. They offer a house clearance service to raise funds for their research.
• Shelter: Shelter helps people struggling with bad housing or homelessness. They offer a house clearance service to raise funds for their work.

• The Salvation Army: The Salvation Army is a charity that provides support to people in need. They offer a house clearance service to raise funds to help people in need.
• Age UK: They say they can help with anything from single item collection to a full house clearance including lofts, garages, sheds, and garden areas.

There also could be house clearance charities that are local to you, rather than the national charities listed above. 

How much do charities charge for house clearance? 

As mentioned, charities do charge for house clearance. But just how much house clearance charities charge for house clearance will be on a case by case basis. Here are some examples.

Shelter, the homeless charity, say they offer a full house clearance and will collect most good quality items from the property. Their full house clearance is chargeable, but they do not list current prices on their website. You need to call them for a quote. 

The British Heart Foundation also provide a charity house clearance which you need to pay for. They say the cost for their charity to do a house clearance will range between £400 and £900. This is not that much different to how much you would pay Zero Waste Group. 

The Age UK charity also charge for their house clearance service, but do not put pricing on their websites. You need to call them for a quote. There are some items that they cannot take including asbestos, building materials, and compressed gas bottles. 

If you cannot find a charity to do a house clearance in your area, or perhaps you feel their pricing is too much, please ask us for help. We can give you a quote. 

You might have even seen our vans in your local area doing house clearances in the southern part of the UK. We operate in the South East, South West, and London areas. Click here to see the locations we cover. Our southern house clearance HQ offices are in Southampton and Winchester.

How to donate your unwanted items during a house clearance

Before asking a charity to help you with a house clearance, be aware that you might need to prepare the items properly and make sure they are clean. As discussed, many charities that charge to collect items from a house clearance, will only take things that they can then sell on which are in a resalable condition.

This might not suit you, so if you think you’d rather book a house clearance with Zero Waste Group, please use our house clearance quote system to see how much it will cost you.

If you do decide to go down the charity house clearance route, and they ask you to prepare items before they come and collect, here’s what you need to do.

Bear in mind, you do not need to do this with a Zero Waste Group house clearance. 

• Sort the items: Sort the items into different categories such as clothes, furniture, electronics, and so on. This will make it easier for the charity to handle the items.
• Clean the items: Clean the items before donating them. This will make them more appealing to the charity and increase their chances of being reused or resold.
• Check the items: Check the items for any damage or faults. If an item is damaged or faulty, it may not be accepted by the charity.

Once the items have been prepared, you can then choose from a small handful of charities that do house clearances which we showed you earlier. Here is the donation process that you can follow:

• Choose a charity that does house clearances: Choose from one of the charities we listed earlier on the page. 
• Contact the charity: Contact the charity to find out their donation process. Some charities may offer a collection service, while others may require you to drop off the items at their location. We believe that almost all with charge you. 
• Arrange for collection or drop-off: If the charity offers a collection service, arrange a convenient time for them to collect the items. If the charity requires you to drop off the items, find out their location and drop off the items at a convenient time.
• Provide information: Provide the charity with any information they may need about the items. This may include the type of item, its condition, and any other relevant information.
• Receive confirmation: Once the items have been donated, receive confirmation from the charity. This may include a receipt or a confirmation email.

In conclusion, house clearance can be a daunting task, especially if you have a lot of items to dispose of and when there has been a bereavement. This is where a professional house clearance company can help. 

Zero Waste Group are fully licensed and insured waste carriers, we donate unwanted items to charity, and are likely working in your area right now.