WASHINGTON — A seismic shift of stuff is underway in homes all over America.
Members of the generation that once embraced sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll are trying to offload their place settings for 12, photo albums and leather sectionals.
Their kids don’t want them.
As baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, clean out attics and basements, many are discovering that millennials, born between 1980 and 2000, are not so interested in the lifestyle trappings or nostalgic memorabilia they were so lovingly raised with.
Whether becoming empty nesters, downsizing or just embracing the decluttering movement, boomers are taking a good close look at the things they have spent their life collecting. Auction houses, consignment stores and thrift shops are flooded with merchandise, much of it made of brown wood.
Downsizing experts and professional organizers are comforting parents whose children appear to have lost any sentimental attachment to their adorable baby shoes and family heirloom quilts.
To make matters worse, young adults don’t seem to want their own college textbooks, sports trophies or T-shirt collections, still entombed in plastic containers at their parents’ homes.
The 20- and 30-somethings don’t appear to be defined by their possessions, other than their latest-generation cellphones.
“Millennials are living a more transient life in cities. They are trying to find stable jobs and paying off loans,” said Scott Roewer, 41, a Washington professional organizer whose business is the Organizing Agency. “They are living their life digitally through Instagram and Face book and YouTube, and that’s how they are capturing their moments. Their whole life is on a computer; they don’t need a shoebox full of greeting cards.”
Rewriting the American dream
Many millennials raised in the collect-’em-all culture (think McDonald’s Happy Meal toys and Beanie Babies) now prefer to live simpler lives with less stuff in smaller downtown spaces, far from the suburban homes with fussy window treatments and formal dining rooms that they grew up in.
The desire of many millennials to stay in cities rather than moving to the suburbs or rural areas is instigating a rewrite of the American dream.
According to the 2014 Nielsen report “Millennials: Breaking the Myths,” 62 percent of millennials prefer to live in the type of mixed-use communities found in urban centers where they can live near shopping, restaurants and work. And 40 percent say they would want to live there in the future.
Take Kelly and Josh Phillips, who rent a 700-square-foot apartment in Washington, D.C.’s Shaw neighborhood. The couple frequently sell things on Craigs list and call an Uber instead of owning a car.
“My parents are always trying to give us stuff,” said Kelly Phillips, 29. “It’s stuff like bunches of old photos and documents, old bowls or cocktail glasses. We hate clutter. We would rather spend money on experiences.”
Reasons for being
Stephanie Kenyon, 60, the owner of Sloans & Kenyon Auctioneers and Appraisers in Chevy Chase, Md., said the market is flooded with boomer rejects.
“Hardly a day goes by that we don’t get calls from people who want to sell a big dining room set or bedroom suite because nobody in the family wants it,” she said. “Millennials don’t want brown furniture, rocking chairs or silver-plated tea sets. Millennials don’t polish silver.”
The formal furniture is often sold at bargain prices, or if it’s not in good shape, it might go straight to the dump.
“Baby boomers were collectors,” said Elizabeth Wainstein, 50, owner and president of Potomack Company Auctioneers in Alexandria, Va., where lots of family treasures end up being sold. “They collected German porcelains or American pottery. It was a passion, and they spent their time on the thrill of the hunt.”
She said younger people aren’t really that interested in filling shelves.
Kenyon said the under-35 set has always had eBay to find what they want and aren’t as nostalgic for former decades.
“Millennials are design-conscious, informed consumers. They bring a lot more confidence to how they want their homes to look,” said Newell Turner, 53, editorial director of the Hearst Design Group. “They need to have reasons for why they are doing something. They are not just taking a bed to inherit it.”
Kenyon said that boomers might be a bit envious of their offspring as they look to shed things and have more freedom to travel.
Downsizing
Roewer often finds himself counseling boomers as he helps them clear out. Roewer was born in 1973, which makes him part of Generation X. He says his own parents try to give him items for his 750-square-foot home.
“When my parents downsized from 4,500 square feet to 1,100, they sent me four boxes of stuff,” he said. “It was things like cards from people I no longer knew, a paper plate with the face of a lion I had glued yarn around and my christening outfit. I appreciate my mom taking care of this stuff, but I really don’t want it.”
Karen Hammerman, 52, one of Roewer’s clients, has three sons ages 17 to 24. She and her husband, Ira, live in a five-bedroom house in Rockville, Md.
“Millennials have stuff on discs and flash drives,” she said. “I don’t think my sons are going to want my walnut table, eight chairs and buffet. We will downsize maybe in five years, and I will either sell this stuff or give it away.”
