Every family arrives at this point from a different place. Some are just worried. Some have a letter from the county. Some have lost a parent and are standing in a house they don't know how to empty. So this page is organized by where you might be right now.
If you're worried but nothing has happened yet
Maybe you visited your dad in Lakeside over the holidays and couldn't get into the kitchen. Maybe your mom in Varina has stopped letting anyone past the front door. You don't need a plan before you call. You also don't need permission from the whole family.
Here's how a first conversation usually goes. You call or text photos. Your project manager asks a few plain questions: how many rooms are affected, whether there are animals or spoiled food, whether the person living there knows you're calling. Then they set up a visit at a time that works, often when your parent is home, so they're part of it from the start.
Your parent's pace matters. Some people can handle a full crew for three days. Some can handle two hours on a Saturday. We plan for the person, not the other way around. If you're still figuring out how to bring it up, our guide to helping a family member is a good place to start.
Hoarding disorder is a recognized condition in the DSM-5. The International OCD Foundation estimates it affects about 2 to 6 percent of adults, and has good information for families.
If you think your parent isn't safe
Sometimes the clutter is the visible part of a bigger problem. Your mom isn't eating, has fallen, can't reach the bathroom, or isn't taking her medicine. That's called self-neglect, and in Virginia you can report it.
Henrico County Adult Protective Services takes reports on weekdays at (804) 501-7346. It covers adults 60 and older and incapacitated adults 18 and older.
Anywhere in Virginia, including the City of Richmond, the statewide APS hotline is (888) 832-3858, 24 hours a day. The report goes to the local social services office where the person lives.
If someone is in danger right now, call 911.
Making a report doesn't mean you've given up on your parent. A social worker can help with health care, money and services that we don't provide. Many families call APS and call us.
We looked for a hoarding task force in Henrico or Richmond like the ones Fairfax and Arlington have, and couldn't find one. In this area, help tends to come through APS, code enforcement and the person's doctor separately, and your project manager can help you keep those pieces lined up.
If the county or city has already been out
A letter from an inspector is scary. Read it twice, then take a photo and send it to us.
In Henrico, property complaints go to the Division of Community Maintenance, part of the Department of Community Revitalization, at (804) 501-4757. The county says it works toward voluntary compliance first, with education and agreed timeframes before enforcement. Inspectors look at things like trash and debris, outside storage and buildings in disrepair.
In the City of Richmond, Property Maintenance Code Enforcement takes reports through RVA311 or at 804-646-6398. An inspection covers the house, garage, sheds and yard.
Your project manager will look at what the notice actually requires and plan the first days around the deadline. Often that means clearing the yard and porch, getting exits and hallways open, and removing garbage and spoiled food. The rest of the house can follow at a pace the person living there can manage.
If a parent has passed
When someone dies, the house usually can't be emptied or sold until a family member is officially appointed. In Virginia, that happens at the Circuit Court Clerk's Office where your parent lived.
In Henrico, the probate office is in the Henrico County Courts Building on East Parham Road. Probate is by appointment and usually takes about an hour. In the City of Richmond, it runs through the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond.
We don't give legal advice. We work around the timeline your attorney or the clerk sets. Before anything leaves the house, crews look through drawers, boxes, books and coat pockets for wills, deeds, titles, bank statements and insurance papers, and set them aside. Read more on our estate cleanout page.
What Richmond homes are like to work in
Housing here shapes the job.
Brick ranches and Cape Cods from the 1950s and 1960s fill neighborhoods in Highland Springs, Lakeside, Tuckahoe, Sandston and Glen Allen. Most sit on crawl spaces, not basements. In Richmond's humid summers, a crawl space under a packed house can trap moisture, and that feeds mold and a musty smell that soaks into everything above it.
Rowhouses and older two-story homes in the Fan, Church Hill, the Museum District and Northside have narrow stairs, shared walls and alley access. We often use a smaller truck and more trips when a dumpster won't fit. Shared walls mean odor and pests can reach the neighbors, so we pay close attention to both.
Summer heat makes spoiled food and pet accidents smell far worse. We usually clear the kitchen and any trash first in hot months. Winter ice in January and February means we salt and clear steps before carrying anything heavy.
Homes with pet or human waste, rodent droppings and heavy odor are normal work for us. Nobody on the crew will make a face or a comment. We remove the soiled material, sanitize, and keep working on the odor until the home is livable.
Where things go
On day one, crews set up keep, donate and discard areas. Photos, letters, cash, jewelry, military records and anything personal get boxed separately for the family.
Good furniture and household goods go to local thrift stores, churches and charities. Metal, cardboard and electronics are recycled where we can.
Henrico runs two public use areas, on Springfield Road and Charles City Road, but they're for residents hauling their own household trash, and the county doesn't accept loads from rental properties or businesses there. A cleanup this size goes through a dumpster or truck and a commercial disposal site, which your project manager arranges. Old paint and chemicals from the garage get set aside for proper drop-off. A 30-yard dumpster is a steel box about 22 feet long, and a packed ranch house can fill more than one.
Learn more about how sorting works on our hoarding cleanup page.
Where we work
A local project manager covers Henrico County, including Glen Allen, Short Pump, Tuckahoe, Lakeside, Highland Springs, Sandston, Varina and Fairfield, and the City of Richmond. If your parent lives just outside, in Chesterfield or Hanover, call and ask.
About cost
We don't publish prices, because every home is different. A two-bedroom rancher where the clutter stops at the kitchen is a very different job from a full house with a packed crawl space and pet damage. The cost page explains what changes the price. Financing is available.
Common questions
Is there a hoarding task force in Henrico or Richmond?
We couldn't find one. Help in this area usually comes through Adult Protective Services, county or city code enforcement, and the person's own doctor. Your project manager can work alongside any of them.
How do I report self-neglect in Henrico County?
Call Henrico Adult Protective Services at (804) 501-7346 on weekdays, or the statewide Virginia APS hotline at (888) 832-3858 any time. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.
Can my parent stay in the home during the cleanup?
Usually, yes. Many people stay put and help decide what's kept. We work room by room so there's always a clear place to sleep, sit and cook.
Do you work on rowhouses in the Fan or Church Hill?
Yes. Narrow stairs and alley access just mean we plan differently, often with a smaller truck and more trips. We keep it low-key and private on tight blocks where neighbors are close.
Can you help us meet a county or city deadline?
Usually, yes. Send us a photo of the notice. Your project manager will plan the first days around what it requires, often exits, hallways, garbage and the yard, and then continue at a steadier pace.