If you want to take it a step further, you can buy greener (and more expensive) energy-saving products, including solar energy systems, geothermal heat pumps, small wind systems, residential fuel cells and micro-turbine systems, and get 30 percent tax credit with no spending limit on each system, through 2016. Go to EnergyStar.gov's Federal Tax Credits for Energy Efficiency for a complete summary.

Consider rent-to-own deals.

The current market has driven many former homeowners into rentals, where they have nothing to show for their payments. Rent-to-own or lease-to-own deals allow buyers to "tire-kick" a home for a designated period while paying a higher-than-market rent to buy down an eventual down-payment. This gets renters vested in a home while they repair their credit and also helps frustrated sellers generate an above-market revenue stream. Make sure to draft a very specific contract that spells out all the options.

Don't take or make it personal.

Our homes have such a personal connection to us that we're often challenged to turn them back into just plain houses when it's time for us to sell. It is always best to remove personal effects such as pictures, knickknacks, mementos, trophies, greeting cards and the like before showing a house. (A good agent or home-stager should emphasize this.) There is a rule of thumb that you should count every item in every room of a for-sale home and eliminate or store 50 percent of them.

The buyers want to imagine themselves in the house for years to come and your excess decor and whatnots only distract from this vision. And don't get defensive about colors or design patterns or flooring that you love. It's OK to grit your teeth as you grin. Let your agent be the buffer. Remember, the customers (your buyers) are always right, unless, of course, they're low-balling you.

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