Property Cleanouts · a straight comparison
If the house holds things worth selling and you have a few weeks, an estate sale company runs a sale and takes a cut. If you have a closing date, a cleanout crew clears everything for a flat price per trailer load. Donation pickups are free but take only what they can resell. In Polk County the order that works is sell or donate first, clean out last.
5.0 · 119 Google reviews · Davenport & Polk County
| Estate sale company | Cleanout crew | Donation pickup | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it's for | Turning contents into money | Getting the house empty by a date | Giving usable furniture and goods a second home |
| Timeline | Weeks to sort, price, advertise and run the sale | A day for most houses, two for the fullest | Whenever the next truck slot opens |
| What you pay or receive | Proceeds after the company's commission; some charge extra to haul what's left | $350 per half trailer, $700 per full, counted on a walkthrough | Nothing either way; the pickup is free |
| What's left afterward | Whatever didn't sell, plus the closets and garage nobody priced | Bare rooms and a swept driveway | Everything they turned down: worn, broken, or not on their list |
| Remote coordination | Depends on the company; ask before you sign | Rob walks the house by FaceTime, sets aside papers, photos and valuables, takes payment remotely | Scheduled online or by phone; the driver takes what's on the accepted list |
| The order that usually works | First, if there's value | Last, after the sale or the pickup | Middle, for the good pieces that didn't sell |
Call a sale company when the house has furniture, tools, collections or a garage full of things a stranger would pay for. The industry runs on commission: the company earns when items sell, so they price, stage and advertise, and you get what's left after their cut. Read the contract for what happens to unsold items, since some companies charge separately to haul them. Plan on weeks, not days, and a house that's still partly full when the sale ends.
Call the cleanout crew when the deadline is real. A listing date, a closing, a landlord's inspection, or a family that's flown in for four days. Rob walks the house with you, counts trailer loads, and quotes flat: $350 for a half trailer, $525 for three-quarters, $700 for a full. The crew pulls donation-worthy items aside as they load where it makes sense, sets aside anything that looks personal, and leaves the rooms empty. Most Polk County houses clear in a day; the fullest take two, and Rob says which before he starts.
Call for a donation pickup when the good furniture is still good and nobody in the family wants it. The Salvation Army schedules free pickups, and their site lists what they won't take, like damaged appliances and old televisions, so read the list before you book. It's a truck slot, not a cleanout; the driver takes what's accepted and leaves the rest. It costs nothing and it's the right home for a sofa that still has years in it.
Sale first if there's value, donation next for the good pieces that didn't sell, cleanout last for everything else. Doing it in that order means the cleanout crew hauls less, so the load count drops and so does the number. Skipping straight to the cleanout is fine when there's nothing worth selling; just say so, and tell Rob what to set aside.
One worked example
Against the criteria above, with the review evidence, verbatim.
Big Rob's does the third leg. Rob quotes estate cleanouts flat per trailer load after a walkthrough, on foot or over FaceTime, and the number holds. Papers, photos and small valuables get set aside instead of loaded, and the crew sorts what's still usable for donation as they go. Out-of-state families hand over a code, walk the house by video, and pay remotely.
The two reviews below are a father's house cleared to go on the market and a Kissimmee house that took several trailer loads. Both were quoted before anyone lifted a thing.
Big Rob's Hauling was great! I needed help to clear out my Dad's house to sell. They arrived on time and quickly loaded all old furniture and other items that could not be donated. They gave me a fair flat rate. They were kind and courteous. I would highly recommend Big Rob's Hauling!
Suzanna Antenucci · this month
THE ABSOLUTE BEST HAULER IN FLORIDA!!! His team came in like bosses and got this incredibly massive cleanout done in a four bedroom, three bathroom house in Kissimmee emptied of multiple, fully loaded dumpsters. The garage alone took two full dumpsters. Big Rob is the PRO YOU NEED for clean outs!!!!
Sonjia Mata · this year
Questions
Some offer it as an add-on and charge for it on top of their commission. Ask what happens to unsold items before you sign, and compare that fee to a flat per-load cleanout quote.
Rob walks the house with you on FaceTime, you mark what stays and what goes, and the crew handles the rest. Papers and photos get set aside. You pay remotely and get photos of the empty rooms when it's done.
No. They take what's on their accepted list and in usable shape, and they come when a truck is scheduled. Worn, broken or oversized items stay behind, which is what the cleanout crew is for.
Call before noon and it's usually gone today. Or text a photo of the pile and Rob sends back a flat quote.
5.0 · 119 Google reviews · Davenport & Polk County
