5 signs your home is already organized enough and what to focus on next

There comes a point in organizing your home where the job is done, and your focus should shift to something else. But you may not realize this and keep tinkering with the same organizing systems, potentially making pre-existing ones worse, or wasting time and effort.

If your home organizing ideas seem functional and you aren't left at a loss when you need to find something, you're more than likely ready to think about what else you can do in your home to keep your systems running smoothly.

Here, professional organizers delve into the signs your home is already organized enough and what to focus on next to boost your organizing systems without changing their current functional state.

1. Your spaces operate with calm and consistency

If you go through your home operating like a well-oiled machine, knowing where everything is and feeling calm among the ups and downs of the day, your home is more than likely already organized enough and you would only over-organize your home if you kept going.

This is because your storage solutions are effective, your systems align with your needs and lifestyle, and you're used to how everything works so it's become second nature to live in your peaceful, organized environment.

Di Ter Avest, professional organizer, owner of Di Is Organized, and author of the book 'Organize Yourself Healthy', available on Amazon, explains how an organized home can benefit a person's mental state for the day ahead. 'A tidy bathroom, for instance, sets the stage for smoother mornings and wind-down evenings. It's simple to go about your day minus unnecessary friction, and everything is in its place and in order.'

Next: If your home is already super organized, Di suggests turning your focus onto organizing your time and self-care routines to double down on feeling positive in your home. Neglecting to organize your time is a common household organizing mistake, as people forget to do it, as time isn't tangible.

'Now is the perfect opportunity to shape a morning routine that energizes you, or an evening wind-down routine that helps you feel grounded before bed,' says Di. 'Start with simple anchors: a consistent wake-up time, a skincare routine, or 10 minutes of quiet before the house wakes up. Organizing your time doesn’t mean filling it up. It means shaping it with intention.'

Using a journal such as the legend self-care journal from Amazon, complete with reflection pages, stickers, and guided meditations, can be an effective way to organize your morning routine and track healthy habits. Don't forget to set an alarm on your phone to wake up!

2. You don't lose anything

When was the last time you truly lost something? When the TV remote seemed to vanish into the deep depths of goodness knows where, or you swore you must have left your purse at the grocery store.

If this doesn't resonate at all and you don't ever feel like you're losing control of clutter, it's a definite sign that your home is already highly organized, as everything has a home.

Ben Soreff, professional organizer and partner of House 2 Home Organizing, says, 'If your entire home has finished organized systems, then you will be more productive and less likely to lose your stuff.'

Next: It's great that you don't lose anything, but as Ben explains, the even better next step is doing all you can to ensure this stays that way by encouraging the people around you to put their items back after use.

The more items that are scattered around a home, the harder it will be for anyone to find what they're looking for, so if you're the only one who can navigate their belongings a constructive conversation about tidying, organizing stuff, and encouraging your family to declutter could be worth approaching.

'While every item in your space has a "home," that doesn't mean other people are going to keep up with the habit of putting things away,' says Ben. 'It is important to note that since people are living in the house, every day requires constant upkeep, so unless you turn your attention to how to best maintain this upkeep to help make sure nothing gets lost in the future, you'll feel constantly in chaos and can't stay organized.'

3. There aren't unnecessary duplicate items

When a space is less organized, it's harder to find your stuff, meaning a person is more likely to unknowingly purchase things they already hav,e even if you never need to keep duplicates of these items.

Then a month or two down the line, when you're digging through your under-stair storage, you'l find out that you already had three flashlights after all for that camping weekend, but you now own six after buying more.

If this rarely or never happens to you, it's a sign your home is already organized enough, as your items have homes, you know what you have at all times, and you can find what you own with ease.

Di explained how this idea can operate in an organized kitchen. 'You can see what you have, you’re wasting less food, and cooking doesn’t feel like chaos anymore. Your fridge is clean and your spices are in order—you’re set up for success.'

Next: If you're not buying duplicates, your home is going to be filled with less clutter. To help keep it that way, Di recommends 'creating systems that support your current success', such as scheduled seasonal decluttering sessions and ensuring items are put away directly after use.

When I declutter my home, I like to place a big box or basket similar to the CHERISHGARD 70L large laundry basket from Walmart in a central location, like on my living room floor, play some music, and casually put items inside that I feel ready to let go. Then, if I feel it's necessary, I'll embark on a deeper declutter at a later date.

4. Your house is guest-ready, now

Many of us are used to the all too familiar rush and frenzy of prepping the house when last minute company are about to land at our doorstep. But if unannounced company doesn't peak your nerves or entice a major session of cleaning before hosting, your home is already organized enough for sure.

Grace Hall, professional organizer and owner of Grace 2 Organize, says, 'If you can confidently have unexpected guests or can imagine hosting a party or get-together with low stress about preparing your home and your guest bedroom being uncomfortable, those are signs your home is organized enough.'

Next: When speaking to Kimberly Corey, certified professional organizer, certified virtual organizing professional, and owner of Finely Sorted Organizing, she made an incredibly thoughtful point linked to the loved ones we may be hosting for our get-togethers that could be the next focus of our organizing efforts.

'The house may be guest-ready, but how about your affairs? We never know when our time is up on this Earth, and the last thing we want to do is leave our loved ones with the huge job of tidying up our affairs if we were to pass,' says Kimberly. 'You may want to consider creating an inventory of your home and digital assets, decluttering surplus possessions, and coming up with systems for your important paperwork.'

I use a labeled, expandable filing system for my paperwork similar to the LANNEY expanding file accordion from Walmart, but if you have lots of documents a simple filing cabinet like the Bush furniture key west lateral filing cabinet with two drawers available on Amazon would be easier to navigate for yourself and your loved ones.

5. Your home is free from visual clutter

A home free from visual clutter, where permitted items are organized and not just hidden in random cupboards, is likely quite thoroughly organized throughout.

It's a balance between displaying the items you like to see, without displaying everything and having all items in your life simultaneously creating visual noise. Reducing visual clutter in your living room for example, means you can relax easily, without your home feeling deprived of what you love.

Next: If your home is clutter-free and feels light, it's important to turn your attention to hidden storage solutions that might be harboring lots of stuff such as attics, basements and storage units.

If you have a small living space, it's not surprising that you're utilizing any storage area you can to the best possible degree. But since these spaces are often out of sight, they're out of mind and may cause you to forget the true number of items you own. By organizing these spaces and decluttering when and where needed, you can continue feeling lighter without worrying about other spaces in your life becoming unapproachable.

'You've banished all visual clutter from surfaces and closets, but have you breached the seemingly impossible task of the old storage unit diligently billing monthly, slowly draining your account as you forget what's been stored there?' says Kimberly.

'It can be an enormous task to process the amount of possessions in a space like this but consistency is the key to getting it finished, and asking another person to help out or 'body double' will keep your head in the game when the sight of the mass of stuff may quickly drain your enthusiasm.'

Organizing essentials

Meet the experts

Di Ter Avest

Di Ter Avest has been a professional organizer for 12 years, helping 80-100 families per year through in-home organizing services. Di's extensive hands-on experience and the Organize Yourself Healthy method they specially created set them apart. This unique approach combines home organization with personal well-being, helping moms and families create systems that truly support their lifestyles.

Ben Soreff

Ben Soreff has been a professional organizer for 17 years, and a partner at House 2 Home Organizing (a member of the National Association of Professional Organizers - NAPO) for around 10. House to Home Organizing help around 160 families per year.

Kimberly Corey

Kimberly Corey of Finely Sorted Organizing, LLC has been in business since 2000 and has helped hundreds of clients, both the general and special, vulnerable populations to bring peace and productivity to home and office spaces. Projects run the gambit from focused target areas for only a few on-site/in-person sessions to ushering a client through years of whole house decluttering with regular virtual/on-line sessions in preparation for cross-country moves. Kim is a Certified Professional Organizer® and a Certified Virtual Organizing Professional.

Grace Hall

Grace 2 Organize has been decluttering and organizing homes for over 7.5 years, helping thousands of clients to implement new storage facilities, organizing routines, and to tackle long awaited projects. The team believe that decluttered and organized spaces promote happy, fulfilled and purposeful living.

Organizing and decluttering often go hand in hand, but it's possible that they can work against each other in a person's pursuit to improve their home.

If you're considering decluttering a bit to curb clutter from ruining your organized home, be aware of these decluttering mistakes that make organizing your home so much harder.