Organizing Options of Illinois

I was overwhelmed! I had my own stuff, plus stuff from my parents home that I inherited. OMG, the STUFF! Antiques, silver, books out the whazoo. What to do! Mara came in, quickly surveyed the scene and laid out a game plan. Using her recommended vendors, I did most of the work, but she handled things I knew nothing about - like how to shed silverware and antiques. What mover to use. Who was the most dependable junk hauler. A few months later, I moved. Still with too much stuff, but that was my fault. Mara is a gem and a delightful lady. Just call her and REST EASY. Her fees are very reasonable.

Mara at organizing options gave me great advice for our situation. She was extremely helpful.

We highly recommend Mara and the crew. The challenge of cleaning out my mother-in-law's home in order to get it ready for sale seemed insurmountable so we called Mara. She walked through the home with us, gave us her expert comments as to what she would sell, donate and trash. She guided us through the whole process, and completed the task very quickly once we hired her. The 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath home with a basement and garage full of stuff is now completely empty except for a few pieces of furniture for staging. We were stunned to see what she and the crew was able to accomplish. Thank you Mara!

Mara couldn't have been better. She was with me every step of the way through an emotional and overwhelming project. First, she assessed what we had and determined what could be auctioned, what could be sold, and what should be donated. She packed up dishes, silver, knick knacks, etc etc. She identified furniture she thought could be sold and arranged to have that picked up by an auction house and a dealer. She is very knowledgeable about what there is a market for, and what there isn't. She removed all the objects she thought she could get auctioned/sold and took them to the appropriate dealers. Then she arranged for junk removers to come and dispose of the rest. They junk removers were very careful and courteous and planned on taking our things to Goodwill. She took her commission from the money we made through auctions and sales. I felt like I had a partner every step of the way, and would not hesitate for a minute to recommend her and use her company again. For the work and effort she put in, I felt her commission was very reasonable.

We were looking for a medium-sized agency: One large enough to be efficient, but not so large that it's difficult to track progress or where items are going. Mara and her team were the perfect match for us. They were efficient, cleaning the entire house in only 5 days. This was a very large task. It was managed expediciously and well worth the cost. Due to distance, Mara kept us informed of every transaction and donation via email, phone calls and texts. She sought our input multiple times to ensure that items went where we wanted them to go. We were so pleased with the resources (buyers and charities) they had available so that there were no transportation costs for moving those items offsite. The team seemed to adopt our family and were very sensitive to family history and items. They were also sensitive to the items that could be sold or donated, so nothing that could be used again was recycled or trashed. Mara and her team has our complete admiration for their trustworthiness and honesty, transparency, and congeniality! We wish her much continued success and many cumulosic days! Phil and Ruth

Mara took great care and detail in tackling my issue, even considering we did not strike a deal to work together. I would highly recommend working with Mara for your estate needs.

The whole team from Organizing Options was wonderful to work with during the process of cleaning out my sister's apartment. I am not from the Chicago area and without their help it would have taken much longer to get her apartment emptied. They arranged for haulers to take away the donations and refuse. They personally took away hazardous materials and disposed of electronics. Mara arranged for buyers to come in and look at the items I had for sale. My sister lived in an apartment two floors up with no elevator and all items had to be carried out down two twisting flights of stairs. Mara even took a bucket of change to turn in for cash, she also went and exchanged some foreign currency my sister had. Mara was very knowledgeable about buyers and because my sister had many books related to her work she told me about a company that would come and take/buy those books. The staff that Mara brought in were extremely hard workers. I was amazed at the amount of work they got done in a very sort time. My sister had a large two bedroom apartment with many closets, bookshelves and cupboards. Everything was sorted and gone thru during 3 - 4 work days over the course of a two week period. The whole team was very sensitive to my feelings during this difficult time. Mara stayed in constant touch with me to keep me informed about buyers, haulers and work dates. By the time we were finished with my sister's apartement I felt like I had made new friends and hated to see them go. I highly recommend this company if you have the need to clean out or organize a home. The cost is going to very according to the size of your project. I paid $75.00 per worker per hour. When items were sold the money went to the company, the money brought in was split 60/40 with the 40% going to Organizing Options. My 60% was subtracted from the money I owed the company. Mara kept good records of the money brought in and went over where we were each time she was at the apartment. I felt the price I paid was very fair given the amount of work that was done.

My family had a great experience with Organizing Options! Working with Mara and Brett was a positive experience from start to finish. They were professional, fast, thorough, honest and best of all, they were extremely kind and pleasant throughout the duration of the project. Our family member's home was in hoarder's condition and Organizing Options managed to clear it in 2 days and that was no easy task! Mara & Brett kept us fully informed and updated along the way and never hesitated to answer any of our questions or address any concerns. They found a solution that worked best for our situation and gave their best effort to clearing and selling the estate's contents in record time. They also kept our budget top of mind which gave me full confidence that they really did have our family's best interest in mind. Organizing Options is truly a family company that takes pride in taking great care of other families! We could not have done this without them. If you are looking for an honest company that demonstrates hard work and respect for a reasonable price, look no further!

Mara and her crew showed up on time and jumped into the work immediately. I'm a very organized person and I was impressed by how organized Mara was...as well as her crew. They were efficient, compassionate, fast and worked really hard to clear the house out in less than a day. They did their best to sell as many items as possible, both to the buyer who came to the house and to outside buyers through Mara's contacts and on Craigslist.

I contacted the company to see if they would be able to run an estate sale auction. Mara and I spoke. I gave her some information, for which she wanted to review and get back to me. She called me back within an hour. Informed me based on her schedule they were unable to help. Since our schedules would not match up she did the next best thing, gave another company's name and phone that might be able to. Mara then proceed to tell me if they could not help, to call her back she would see what she could do. This is a company that I will keep their number handy for my future needs or my family and friends needs. I know that I would have enjoyed working with them.