New global research reveals half of people would rather inherit nothing than deal with a loved one's belongings - as the largest transfer of personal possessions in history quietly begins.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - August 4, 2026) - Everyone is talking about the Great Wealth Transfer—the tens of trillions of dollars expected to pass from baby boomers to the next generation. But the real inheritance story isn't just about money. It's about the photo albums, the china cabinets, and the boxes that haven't been opened in twenty years.

For many families, losing a parent or grandparent also means inheriting a lifetime of possessions and the difficult decisions that come with them. This growing phenomenon is what 1-800-GOT-JUNK? is calling the Great Junk Transfer, and new research reveals its hidden emotional toll.

1-800-GOT-JUNK? commissioned a study of 2,200 adults across the United States, Canada, and Australia. Nearly half (48%) said they would rather inherit nothing at all than sort through a relative's belongings. The division reveals how complicated it is to inherit.

The cultural expectation is that leaving your things to your children and grandchildren is an act of love. The data complicates that. And the people doing the leaving seem to sense it — 60% say they don't want their relatives to have to sort through their belongings after they're gone.

What the research found

The study reveals a consistent pattern across three countries: people want meaning, not volume. And the conversations that could make the whole process easier are largely not happening.

• Most people want a few things, chosen with care. 54% of respondents would rather receive a few carefully selected items from a loved one — ideally with a personal note — than inherit everything they owned. When asked how many items they'd want to inherit, the most common answer was just 1 to 5.
• Belongings can make grief harder. Of the 55% of people who have helped clear out a relative's home, 54% say dealing with the belongings made it harder to fully grieve. In the US, that rises to 57% (with 30% strongly agreeing, highest of any market).
• Guilt keeps people holding on. 60% feel a sense of guilt or obligation to keep family items even when they'd rather not.
• The conversation isn't happening. 42% of people who don't want to inherit anything haven't told their family. 26% of respondents never discuss inheritance plans with their families. In Australia, only 4% have these conversations regularly.
• The emotional arc is overwhelm, then relief. People feel most overwhelmed before a clean out, most productive during, and significantly lighter after. Canada is the most cathartic market: 43% feel lighter after a cleanout.
  
  

"Here’s what 37 years of being invited into people’s homes has taught me: the relief on the other side is always real. When the weight lifts, something new can begin.

"We’re not just here to help with the physical side of clearing a home. We’re here so families don’t have to face that weight alone."

— Brian Scudamore, Founder & CEO, 1-800-GOT-JUNK?

WHY WE HOLD ON — ACCORDING TO SCIENCE

According to Dr. Blaise Aguirre, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, "What people actually remember is rarely the objects themselves. Our brains remember emotions and experiences, not the things they have." What the Great Junk Transfer is asking us to do, he says, is "separate the emotion from the object, and trust that the feeling completely survives the letting go."

NOT ALL INHERITANCE IS CREATED EQUAL

While the data shows nearly half of people would rather inherit nothing than deal with someone else's belongings, the study also surfaced what Canadians, Americans, and Australians are actually sitting on and passing down. Among the most memorable items respondents reported inheriting:

• A bale of cotton signed by John Wayne
• A pure gold butter knife
• Roman artifacts from 300 AD
• My family tree history dating back to the 12th century
• Mint-sealed Beatles' album
• Authentic Tiffany Studios stained-glass lamp
• A Miami Heat jacket back from the Heat's first championship
• My 6 ft wooden giraffe named Bubba
• A clear glass donkey that doubles as a beer mug
• Marionettes from the 1800s made of clamshell paper
• An antique dentist chair
• A statue of Abraham Lincoln

Why this matters now

The Great Junk Transfer is already underway, and its scale is unlike anything families have navigated before. Data from 1-800-GOT-JUNK? found that roughly 25% of North American junk removal bookings between 2021 and 2025 were tied to a loss, inheritance, or estate cleanout.

But beyond the logistics, this research is the start of a conversation most families haven't had yet: When to let go, what to pass on, and what really matters to the people we love—these are questions worth asking before the moment demands it. 1-800-GOT-JUNK? hopes this data encourages families to have that conversation sooner.

The full findings from The Great Junk Transfer are available here.

About the research

The Great Junk Transfer was conducted by Talker Research on behalf of 1-800-GOT-JUNK?. The study surveyed 2,200 respondents: 1,200 Americans, 800 Canadians (including at least 100 from Quebec), and 200 Australians, drawn from a general population sample. Fieldwork was conducted online between May 22-27, 2026.

About 1-800-GOT-JUNK?

1-800-GOT-JUNK? is a multinational junk removal franchise founded in Vancouver in 1989 by Brian Scudamore, operating as part of O2E Brands. With approximately 150 locations across Canada, the United States, and Australia, it holds approximately 16 percent of the North American junk removal market through standardized service delivery.

The company is built on a people-first approach: showing up professionally, treating every home with care, and understanding that the work often carries more weight than what's being removed. Learn more at 1800gotjunk.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/306996