Spring Cleaning Your San Carlos Home: Expert Tips from Kathy Kaufmann, Owner of Happy Home Crew

Kathy Kaufmann is a certified senior move manager and expert declutterer, and Owner of The Happy Home Crew. She draws on her experience at the Institute on Aging, as well as her career as a business manager and entrepreneur to help people navigate their way through important retirement considerations and resources, ensuring they take the right approach. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Michigan State University.

Spring cleaning doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. With the right approach, it can become an enjoyable, rewarding task. Kathy Kaufmann, owner of The Happy Home Crew, has been helping people in San Carlos and the Bay Area declutter and organize their homes since 2016. Drawing on her experience as a certified senior move manager, Kathy shares her expert tips to help you tackle your spring cleaning with ease while also keeping the process sustainable and organized.

Don’t Overdo It: Set Realistic Goals

One of the most common mistakes people make during spring cleaning is attempting to declutter their entire home in a single weekend. Kathy emphasizes that decluttering your whole house will take time—about one week for every year you’ve lived in the space. Instead, aim for small, manageable goals. “Pick a room or space you can complete in 2-3 hours. Focus on decluttering and removing items that no longer serve you,” she suggests. 

Include the Whole Family – Make it a Group Effort

When sorting through your home, it’s essential to involve everyone in the process. Kathy advises setting up clear guidelines, especially for elderly family members with sentimental attachments to certain items. “Give each person a few clear plastic bins and ask them to choose what to keep. This empowers them to decide and prevents frustration,” she says. For kids, Kathy recommends turning the sorting process into a game, offering small rewards for the most collected items, such as pens or coins.

A common issue is there are two distinct styles – those people who need to see their things, and those who need stuff hidden behind doors and off counters.  Try to find common ground in public spaces and be yourself in private spaces.

Start By Sorting Out the Clutter

As a family, go from room to room to find objects that are out of place, mismatched, or broken.  For unmatched things, keep them close by during sort sessions because you will likely find their mate.

While sorting, make only two piles – things to go and things to stay. Keep labeled boxes or bags to collect items, putting like items together, e.g., all coats together, all electronic parts together, all financial papers together. Additionally, when it comes to organizing, Kathy prefers clear storage bins so you can easily see the contents. Instead of labeling the outside of the container, print or write the contents on a sheet of paper and slip it inside the box for easy reading. 

While going closet to closet or room to room, you may see big objects that you no longer want to keep.  Blue tape those and make a list of where they are to be revisited later. Donating, tossing, and selling has gotten a lot more complicated – you may need to research donation and selling resources, so wait to remove things until the end.

If going room to room still feels overwhelming, Kathy recommends having specialized sorts for the whole family.  Like, “Saturday morning we will all sort our socks.  Bring me your unmatched socks.”

Organizing is Simple – Think About Flow, Placement, and Maintenance

Once you’ve sorted through your items, it’s time to organize. Kathy recommends focusing on three key principles: flow, placement, and maintenance. “Don’t start with the goal of getting bigger storage. Instead, think about how much time you can realistically dedicate to maintaining your home,” she advises. For clothing, prioritize your most-used items by keeping them easily accessible and move less frequently used items to the back. With this approach, you’ll maximize your space and save time in the long run.

Kathy’s Recommendations for San Carlos Homes

• Check out places like ACE Hardware in Carlmont Shopping Center for all your household needs. They offer a great selection of supplies, for your spring cleaning projects.
• For donations, Kathy recommends local charity stores such as the Thrift Center and Family Tree in San Carlos.
• For more unusual storage solutions, check out Antiques and More, Antiques Unlimited, or Bloomingayles, also located in San Carlos, for fun, colorful storage pieces that add personality to your home.

Last Words: Be Mindful of What You Buy

Once you’ve decluttered and organized, Kathy encourages readers to adopt mindful consumerism. “It’s tempting to buy cute, inexpensive items, but cheaper products often wear out quickly. Invest in quality, foundational pieces for your wardrobe and home. Then, have fun with affordable, changeable accessories,” she suggests. This helps keep your space fresh and reduces the environmental impact of your purchases.

By following these expert tips, you’ll be able to achieve a well-organized and clutter-free home, just in time for the warmer months. Remember, spring cleaning is a marathon, not a sprint—take your time and enjoy the process. Happy cleaning!

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About the Authors

Mark Martinho and Vivienne Kelvin are the hosts of San Carlos Life and have been residents of San Carlos for years. While running San Carlos Life together with an awesome team, Mark and Viv are also in the business of real estate. They are co-owners of Vabrato Real Estate, a luxury real estate brokerage serving the City of Good Living, and the whole of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

With over 30 years of combined experience in the business and 95% of their clients coming in from referrals, Mark and Viv take great pride and joy in exceeding your expectations.

Contact Mark and Viv of Vabrato Real Estate