Thanks for all your replies. Keep them coming.

Any other rules people chose to use to help de-hoard?

thank you for all the information, my magical thinking has always said it shouldn't take time to clean, thus I have lived in squalor without knowing it, or thinking it was temporary, and it would magically change, now I know it takes work and being aware of my surroundings and the consequence of bringing more stuff home, while I have too much of everything, and in the future, buying something only if I am willing to get rid of something, wonder how I made it this many years without knowing this stuff about stuff!!

That is called the
"ONE IN ONE OUT" rule.
For every new item brought in, one item must go out.
Some people who have to reduce a lot will use the
"ONE IN 5 OUT" rule.
People in maintenance can stay in maintenance by using the one in one out rule.

I personally use the one in one out rule.
Makes me think long and hard when I see a pretty blouse at the store because I may not want to get rid of one I already own.

I had a thought for the "shoppers" among us, from whatever source "new" items come into the house. If you make a rule that for any one thing coming into the home to stay, another must leave simultaneously, then perhaps one can stop the accumulation over time.

Of course, there are exceptions but shoppers really know what I mean. 😀

We threw out [and by threw out, I mean put into recycling] a glass jar that would have been just perfect for keeping random nails or screws. Which we don't have and wouldn't use if we did, as we are retired and have a well-stocked toolbox. Still, it was a painful moment.

Old habits! I categorize much of my problem as "too much of a good thing".

Excellent replies from Roxie and Tillie. I need to pay attention to that.

Seeing the perspectives of others here helps open my eyes. You ask great questions, Kara.

We live in our homes.
We eat, do projects & crafts. Generate laundry, read and play.
Home is where we keep our stuff. Home is where my cats are.
Every day that we are home we make little messes and pull our stuff out of drawers, cupboards & closets to use it.
We need to keep a constant balance of what is coming in as to what should be going out.
There is limited space.
Unused, unwanted or damaged items need to leave to make room to store items we use, want & need.
Used items need to be washed and returned to where we store them.
We need to clean & wash & wipe up our little messes we make regularly or they will become squalor.
When we keep only what we truly need, use, and treasure it makes keeping things clean and tidy so much easier.

As long as the things I have are things that I use, need and truly treasure they are not clutter. They are not excess and I do my best to store them in the best way that I can manage in the space that I have.

Do you know how people who don't have any clutter manage to keep their homes clutter free?
They are constantly decluttering one little item after another almost daily.

Sigh. Cleaning never stops, I think. I had magical thinking that once the cleanout was done, I could rest. No such thing. There a millions of small matters and some big to attend to over time. Then there are the daily and weekly "normal" chores like dishes, garbage, laundry, etc., plus all the neglected things like fixing broken or dysfunctional items, or replacing them, painting, etc.

If you have items that have proper storage places to which they are returned after use, and you are actually using them, then I don't think those items constitute a hoard. If you continue adding to those items things that do not get used, you might be beginning a new hoard. If you continue to add, they don't get used, they start overflowing their "proper" storage area, then you have the beginning of a new hoard. At least, that's how I see it.

It can be as simple as: I opened a box in which my new cat tree arrived. Inside was this huge amount of brown paper wrapping, which I pulled out and dumped on the floor. Now, previously, it would have stayed right there. But I took it out to the garbage promptly.