What It Costs to Clear Out a House, Garage, or Yard

Two different things are being priced

A junk removal company sells you disposal. They bring a truck, they carry it out, they haul it off, and the bill is mostly about volume, usually a fraction of a truckload.

Hiring day labor sells you hands. You handle the disposal, whether that is a dumpster, a dump run, or the curb, and you pay for the hours it takes to move things into it.

Neither is a rip off. They answer different questions, and which is cheaper depends almost entirely on whether you have a way to get rid of the pile.

How long a cleanout actually takes

Planning figures for two people, with a dumpster or a truck on site.

• A packed single car garage, three to five hours.
• A two car garage or a basement, most of a day.
• A yard cleanup with brush and debris, three to six hours.
• A full house cleanout, one to three days depending on furniture.
• Add time for stairs, and add a lot of time for anything sorted rather than trashed.

The pieces of the bill

Work them out separately, because only the first one changes with who you hire.

• Labor. The hourly rate times the hours times the people.
• Disposal. A dumpster, or landfill fees per load, or nothing if it is a curb pickup.
• A truck, if you do not have one and nobody you hire does.
• Anything the dump will not take, like paint, tires, or a mattress in some places.

What makes it take twice as long

Sorting. A cleanout where everything goes is fast. A cleanout where somebody has to decide about each box is not a cleanout, it is a project, and it should be priced as a longer day.

Decide before the crew arrives what is going, and mark what stays. That single hour of your time is worth more than any negotiation over the rate.

Two people or three

Two is right for most garages and yards. Go to three when there are stairs, a long carry to the dumpster, or furniture that needs two people at both ends.

For a full house, three moves faster than two by more than the extra cost, because somebody is always at the truck.

Have the disposal sorted first

The most common way a cleanout goes over budget is a crew standing around while somebody figures out where the pile goes. Order the dumpster for the morning, or know your dump hours before you book the day.

Post the job with the address, the start time, the rate, and what you are getting rid of. Your first job post is free, and local workers can answer it the same day.