When you downsize a Florida home or clear out your parents' house, everything ends up in one of five places: the next home, family, a sale, a donation, or a county drop-off. In Satellite Beach and the rest of Brevard County, local charities will pick up good furniture, estate sale companies will run a sale in the house, and the county takes paint and flat screen TVs for free. Start in the garage and leave the photographs for last.

Charity, business and county details verified October 2026 on each organization's own website and brevardfl.gov. What they accept changes, so call before you load the car.

Most people who call me about downsizing aren't asking about the house first. They're asking about what's inside it. Thirty years of furniture, tools, holiday boxes and paperwork is the part that's hard to start.

Downsizing your home is hard mostly because every item needs a decision, and every pile needs somewhere to go. This page is the list of who to call on the Space Coast for each pile, so you can come back to it one room at a time.

What Do You Do With All the Stuff in Your Parents' House?

Every item in the house goes to one of five places, and each one has a local answer.

• The next home. Only what fits the new floor plan.

• Family. Anything someone has asked for, decided before anything is sold.

• A sale. Treasure Coast Estate Liquidators in Indialantic runs estate sales on the beachside, and Westside Furniture Warehouse in Melbourne buys good used furniture.These are many other options.

• A donation. CITA Rescue Mission, the Space Coast Habitat for Humanity ReStore and Love INC's Village Thrift all pick up furniture.

• A county drop-off. Paint, pool chemicals, flat screen TVs and computers go to the free Sarno Road center in Melbourne.

In short: decide what moves with you, let family choose next, then sell, donate and drop off the rest. Start in the garage, not with the photo albums.

Lourdes Sliwa is a real estate agent in Satellite Beach, Florida helping homeowners clear a longtime home before the listing goes live.

Where to Start When Downsizing a Beachside Home

People ask me where in the house to begin. The answer is the room with the least feeling attached to it, which in a Florida house is usually the garage.

The garage and/or shed goes first. Duplicate tools, beach chairs, fishing gear, old paint cans and hurricane supplies are quick to sort because few of them carry memories. Salt air has already rusted some of it, which makes those decisions easy. Clearing the garage also gives you somewhere to put the keep pile, and you can't sort a bedroom without one.

Then the screened porch or the Florida room These are the rooms that fill up out here, and almost nothing in them is sentimental.

Photographs and letters come last. Those are the ones that stop the day. Set them aside in one spot and come back when the rest of the house is moving.

How to Start Decluttering Before a Move

Measure the next home first. A condo in Satellite Beach or Indian Harbour Beach may have less wall space and one less bedroom. If you can, get the floor plan and measure your largest pieces against it before you decide what moves.

Mark everything with colored tape or sticky notes. One color for the move, one for family, one for sale, one for donation. Anyone who walks through the house can see what's decided.

Take photos of each room before you sort. Photos help family in other states see what's there, and the estate sale company and the charities will ask for them too.

Let family choose before anything is sold. Many families take turns, one item per person per round. Agree on a date, and anything not claimed by then goes to the sale or donation. Shipping is worth talking about too, since moving a dresser to Ohio can cost more than the dresser.

If you're getting the house ready to list at the same time, What Increases Home Value Before Selling in Satellite Beach? covers which projects are worth doing.

Who Runs Estate Sales and Buys Used Furniture on the Space Coast?

People ask me whether to hold an estate sale or sell things one at a time. The answer depends on how much is left after the family has chosen.

An estate sale fits a full house. The company prices everything, advertises and runs the sale in the home, and takes a share of what sells. Treasure Coast Estate Liquidators is based in Indialantic and lists Satellite Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Indialantic and Melbourne Beach in its service area. Ask any company what happens to what doesn't sell, since some arrange the clean-out and some don't.

Selling outright fits a few good pieces. Westside Furniture Warehouse in Melbourne buys pre-owned furniture. If you would rather have the money than a donation receipt, selling is a perfectly good answer. Westside is a store, so it doesn't pick up donations.

Expect some surprises on price. Formal china, crystal and large dark wood furniture often bring less than families expect. Well-kept furniture, tools and outdoor gear tend to sell more easily.

Lourdes Sliwa is a real estate agent in Satellite Beach, Florida helping sellers line up the estate sale, the pickups and the clean-out so the home is ready for listing photos on schedule.

Who Picks Up Donated Furniture in Brevard County?

Three local charities will send a truck to the house for furniture in good shape.

CITA Rescue Mission in Melbourne (Christ is the Answer Rescue Mission) takes pickup requests for larger donations. It doesn't take broken, ripped or stained items, pianos or organs, sleeper sofas, or used mattresses unless they're like new.

Space Coast Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Palm Bay picks up large items for free. It's a good call for appliances, cabinets and building materials left over from projects.

Love INC's Village Thrift at 830 North Apollo Boulevard in Melbourne picks up furniture and major appliances free within 25 miles of the store. Its crew can't carry items up or down stairs. It doesn't take damaged furniture, sofa beds, entertainment centers, particle board furniture or exercise equipment.

For smaller items you can drive over, Goodwill has Donation Xpress drop-off centers at 1150 Highway A1A in Satellite Beach and 1060 North Highway A1A in Indialantic, open every day.

Each charity's list changes, so send photos first and let them tell you what they'll take. Ask for a receipt, and ask your CPA whether it helps at tax time.

What About the Things No Charity Will Take?

Every house has a shelf of things that can't go in the trash. Brevard County has a free answer for most of them.

Paint, pool chemicals and automotive fluids go to the county's household hazardous waste centers, free for residents. The closest to the beachside is the Sarno Road facility at 3379 Sarno Road in Melbourne, open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The county takes up to 25 gallons of liquid per household per year, and may ask for proof of residency.

Flat screen TVs and computers go to the same centers, also free. An old tube TV is different. The county doesn't take those at all, and they go in regular household trash.

Mattresses are the hard one. The county's pages don't say where they go, so call your hauler or Brevard County Solid Waste at 321-633-2042 before you drag one to the curb.

Old medications go to a free drop-off. The Indian Harbour Beach Police Department has a lobby drop box open around the clock.

Paperwork waits until you've asked a CPA which tax records to keep and an attorney about wills, deeds and trust papers. The rest can go to a shredding service.

For what the sale itself costs once the house is clear, What Does It Cost to Sell a House in Satellite Beach, Florida? walks through each fee.

What If Nobody in the Family Has Time to Do This?

That's a real situation, and there's a real answer for it. A senior move manager plans the move and runs the sorting, the sale, the donations and the packing.

I worked with a client who simply didn't have the hours. So I brought in Christina Knowles at Make Space Now. She's a Certified Senior Move Manager, and she took him through the whole process.

There are exactly three member companies of the National Association of Senior and Specialty Move Managers in Brevard County. One of them is right here in Satellite Beach. If family lives out of state, a move manager can be the person on site while everyone else joins by video call.

Lourdes Sliwa is a real estate agent in Satellite Beach, Florida helping families who live out of state sell a Brevard County home without flying in for every step.

Quick Signs You're Ready to Start Sorting

You're ready to start on the belongings if a few of these are true.

• You have a rough idea of when you want to list the house.

• You know the room sizes of the next home.

• Family has been asked what they want, even informally.

• The garage can be cleared first to make room for the keep pile.

• You've set aside one spot for photos and keepsakes to wait.

• You've saved the phone numbers for a charity pickup and the county.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should I do with all the stuff in my parents' house?

Sort everything into five groups: the next home, family, sale, donation and county drop-off. Let family choose before anything is sold. Start in the garage and save photographs for last.

Who picks up donated furniture in Brevard County?

CITA Rescue Mission in Melbourne, the Space Coast Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Palm Bay, and Love INC's Village Thrift in Melbourne all pick up furniture in good condition. Each has a list of items it won't take, so send photos first.

Is there an estate sale company that serves Satellite Beach?

Treasure Coast Estate Liquidators is based in Indialantic and lists Satellite Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Indialantic and Melbourne Beach in its service area. For a few good pieces, Westside Furniture Warehouse in Melbourne buys used furniture.

Where do I take old paint and TVs in Brevard County?

Paint, pool chemicals, flat screen TVs and computers go free to the county's Sarno Road center in Melbourne, open Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Old tube TVs aren't accepted and go in regular household trash.

How do I get rid of a mattress in Brevard County?

Call your trash hauler or Brevard County Solid Waste at 321-633-2042 first. Most charities won't take a used mattress unless it's like new.

Can someone handle the downsizing for me?

Yes. A senior move manager plans and runs the process. Brevard County has three member companies of the National Association of Senior and Specialty Move Managers, including Make Space Now in Indialantic and one in Satellite Beach.

Key Takeaways

• Everything in a house you're downsizing goes to the next home, family, a sale, a donation or a county drop-off.

• The garage is the easiest place to start, and photographs are best left for last.

• CITA Rescue Mission, the Habitat ReStore in Palm Bay and Love INC's Village Thrift all pick up furniture in Brevard County.

• Treasure Coast Estate Liquidators runs estate sales on the beachside, and Westside Furniture Warehouse buys used furniture.

• Brevard County takes paint, pool chemicals, flat screen TVs and computers free at the Sarno Road center in Melbourne.

• Old tube TVs aren't accepted by the county and go in regular household trash.

• Brevard County has three senior move manager companies that belong to the national association, one of them in Satellite Beach.

Getting Ready to Downsize From a Beachside Home?

Lourdes Sliwa is a real estate agent in Satellite Beach, Florida helping homeowners move from a longtime home into the next one with a plan for every room.

• If you're selling, request a home value report so you know what the house is worth before you plan the move.

• If you'd like help with the belongings, call me and I'll connect you with the estate sale company, the charity pickup or the move manager that fits your house.

• If you're looking for a condo or a smaller home on the beachside, I can set up a saved search so new listings come to you.

Call or text 321-425-8552, or start at lourdessliwa.com.

No pressure, just the right phone number for every pile in the house.

If you're still deciding on timing, Should I Sell My Home in Satellite Beach, Florida Right Now? covers what to weigh first.

Lourdes Sliwa is a REALTOR with Avanti Way Realty and a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist serving Satellite Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Indialantic and Melbourne Beach. She has lived on the Space Coast for more than 27 years, 23 of them in Tortoise Island, and has sold 317 homes since 2008, about 250 of them in the 32937 beachside ZIP. Call or text 321-425-8552.