The Weirdest Home Features Chicago Buyers Are Actually Asking For in 2025

The Biggest News Jason Rosenberg
3 days ago
3 min read

Remember when “move-in ready” just meant fresh paint and maybe a dishwasher? Yeah, those days are gone. Today’s buyers want homes that double as farms, spas, secret lairs, and—occasionally—a scene from The Sims. Let’s check out the wackiest requests in 2025’s Chicago market. Warning: You might start wondering if you’ve been living in the wrong house this whole time.

1. Chicken Coops & Greenhouses: Move Over, Open Concept

Apparently, everyone in Chicago is just one bad day away from becoming a full-blown homesteader. Why settle for a breakfast nook when you can have fresh eggs courtesy of your own backyard chickens? Pro tip: Put a chicken in every listing photo. “Comes with breakfast!” 🐓

2. Sleep Sanctuaries: Blackout or Bust

Forget “master suite.” What buyers want is a sleep cave. We’re talking blackout curtains, NASA-level air purifiers, and enough soundproofing to silence your neighbor’s polka band—or your spouse’s snoring. If you don’t wake up thinking you slept in a sensory deprivation tank, do you even own a house in 2025?

3. Vintage Everything—But Not Your Grandma’s Plastic Couch Covers

Today’s buyers want old-school charm (think: stained glass, retro tile, secret Narnia wardrobes), but none of the weird smells or doilies. If your house screams “Instagram, but make it 1926,” you’re golden.

4. Hidden Rooms & Secret Bars: Real Life Clue (Without Colonel Mustard)

If your home doesn’t have a bookshelf that swings open to reveal a hidden office or a speakeasy, are you even trying? Bonus points if it actually takes three tries to find the door after a couple martinis.

5. Experience Spaces: Who Needs Reality, Anyway?

Game rooms! Home theaters! Karaoke lounges! It’s all about giving buyers a place to ignore their responsibilities (or their families). If your basement doesn’t have an arcade or at least a popcorn machine, prepare to be outbid by someone with a full-blown bowling alley.

6. Barkitecture: The Dog Is the Client Now

Pet baths, built-in puppy playrooms, and secret cat tunnels—today’s buyers want their pets to have a better life than most college students. If your house doesn’t have a “dog spa,” expect Rover to walk—literally.

7. Biophilic Design: Is That a House or a Rainforest Café?

More plants! More sunlight! Waterfall in the living room? Why not! The goal is to create an environment so lush you’ll need a machete just to get to the kitchen.

8. The Scullery: For Hiding Your Dirty Secrets (and Dishes)

One kitchen? That’s for amateurs. Two kitchens? Now you’re talking. If you don’t have a secret “dirty kitchen” for your midnight Instant Ramen runs, you’re not living in 2025.

9. Beverage Centers: The Bar Cart Has Been Canceled

Move over, Keurig. Buyers want a dedicated coffee shop, wine cellar, and a full-blown cocktail lab—preferably with mood lighting and enough glassware to survive the next pandemic.

10. Third Spaces: Hide and Seek, Adult Edition

Need to escape the family Zoom call or your toddler’s 57th performance of “Let It Go”? Buyers now want meditation rooms, reading nooks, or “quiet rooms” where you can pretend you’re not home when someone rings the doorbell.

Is Your Home Weird Enough?

If your house has any of these features, congrats—you’re basically the Elon Musk of real estate. If not, don’t worry. There’s always time to install a dog shower, fake a secret passage, or just start raising chickens on the balcony (your condo association will love that).

Ready to sell your not-so-average home (chicken coop and disco basement included)?Call/text Jason Rosenberg: 312.882.9797or visit www.jasonrosenbergrealestate.com .No guarantee I won’t bring my own chickens to the showing.