Hoarding Fact: These people are very smart, the vast majority being college educated, some with several degrees, and some are even members of MENSA.

Hoarding Fact: These people are self-taught, as they have trained themselves and those around them to accept their behavior.

Hoarding Fact: Hoarding is all about rationalization. It is about rationalizing that they need the 5 year old newspaper, they need that top of a cereal box.

Hoarding Fact: Every person has a propensity to hoard things, the difference is what is being hoarded. Bernard Madoff, Warren Buffett and Carl Ichan can all be considered hoarders. These hoarders live in ivory towers. Less fortunate hoarders live within their means and abilities.

Hoarding Fact: A Hoarder’s worst nightmare is anyone who they think is going come into their property, take charge and remove all of their belongings.

Hoarding Fact: In 1995, I coined the term disposophobia, which means “the fear of getting rid of stuff”.

Hoarding Fact: Old people who cannot physically take out the trash are NOT hoarders; they have simply ran out of gas.