You have my sympathies, particularly in relation to the shed. I have stress dreams that are all about having to deal with one particular person's house in the event of unexpected demise, and it is not pretty. And I occasionally wonder what I would miss if the house burned down. Should that happen, I would certainly build a much smaller 2 storey house instead of the sprawling single level monstrosity that I have, the the top floor being completely open plan, with 'work stations' around, and windows all the way around (and screens/awnings/etc, to keep the sun out in summer. I also dream about being able to sink a basement, but we are on sand, and it Just Isn't Done around here).

By 'skip the lot' do you mean to get a rubbish skip and put the lot in it? Like 'bin the lot', but on a larger scale? Or some other potentially regional variation I haven't previously encountered?