Q&A: I'm agonizing over organizing. How can I get my home in order?

My No. 1 New Year’s resolution was to organize my home, including the garage. Any tips for managing the mess?

You’re not alone. Getting organized ranks high on resolution lists, up there with losing weight and spending more time with family and friends. The National Association of Professional Organizers even designates January as Get Organized Month. This drive to organize spells big business for manufacturers of de- and uncluttering products: The storage-and-organizing industry is a $6 billion business, and Americans will spend $8.6 billion on organizing products in 2011, according to the Freedonia Group, a business-research company.

But while plastic bins and drawer dividers can be part of an organizing strategy, buying them is not the starting point. “I try to steer my clients away from buying products, at least in the beginning,” says NAPO president and Boston-based organizer Standolyn Robertson. Instead, she gets homeowners to figure out how they want to use a space. In a garage, that might mean creating space for a small plant-potting station—“not to mention the $80,000 worth of cars that are currently parked out on the driveway,” says Robertson.

Once you’ve figured out what function a space will serve, it’s time to purge and purge again, as our colleagues at ShopSmart note in their March 2008 issue. Debra Proctor, an organizer based in Raleigh, North Carolina, stresses the importance of sorting. She has clients take everything out of a given space and sort it into three piles: essentials, useful stuff that they’re not crazy about, and items that no longer serve any purpose. She has them sort through the useful pile again until only the bare necessities are left.

The next step involves getting rid of unwanted items. Some of the cast-asides will merit a date with the dustbin. But keep them out of the landfill, if possible, by observing local recycling laws. For example, rather than toss paint cans out with the household garbage, take them to your local household-hazardous-waste station. Learn more about dealing with leftover paint here and disposing of other household materials. And visit our Electronics Reuse & Recycling Center.

For items that are still in decent shape, find charities that will take them off your hands for free. Some organizations will even come to your home and haul away the goods—and you might even earn a tax deduction in the process. Click on each category below to find an organization that will take your items.

Appliances    Automobiles    Books    Building Supplies    Cell Phones    Computers    Electronics    Exercise Equipment    Furniture 

Other options for getting rid of your stuff include Freecycle and Craigslist. Remember, your trash might be someone else’s treasure.

Once you’ve parsed, purged, and passed along, you’re ready to find a home for the stuff you’ll be keeping. “Placement is important,” says Robertson, emphasizing that you should keep objects near where you’ll use them. In other words, don’t store DVDs in a separate room from where your home theater is.

The execution stage is the time to make any purchases that will help keep things in their proper place. We’ve tested pro-installed and DIY systems for closets and garages. Some of the DIY systems delivered nightmarish results—wobbly parts, confusing instructions, indifferent customer service—while others were as good as professionally installed systems for a lot less money and required only your time and basic tools.—Daniel DiClerico

Essential information: Share your ideas with or get advice from other readers in our new home-organizing forum.