We've all seen those fashion faux pas: muscle shirts that only accentuate middle-age spread or tight low-cut jeans that turn soccer moms into muffin-top casualties.

You can make a home unfashionable in the same way by choosing the wrong presale improvements.

Few real estate agents will object to any upgrades made to your house prior to putting it on the market. But rushing ahead with improvements you think will elevate the asking price can seriously deplete financial reserves that should be used to fix more fundamental flaws.

"Buyers are discerning, and they're in the driver's seat right now," says Pat Combs, president of the National Association of Realtors. "I'm doing walk-throughs a lot lately to help sellers determine what things make sense to do and what things don't. You can do other things in a home where it's not appropriate, but just don't ever expect to get your investment back out."

Combs recalled one case in point involving clients who installed a swimming pool before listing their house.

"First of all, there are no swimming pools in the neighborhood, and second, the price point is such that they're never going to get their investment out because that neighborhood doesn't attract people who want pools," she says. "Sometimes, they call us too late."

Making Targeted Improvements
There are age-appropriate makeovers based on the vintage of your home that may yield a faster sale at a better price. Such targeted improvements also save you money when compared to full-monty, state-of-the-art renovations throughout the home.

"The market we're in right now, people are looking at the price per condition," says Rick LeForce, a real estate broker with 1st USA Realty in Scottsdale, Ariz. "People are going through the home like detectives. If it hasn't been landscaped properly, if the home doesn't flow, even if it doesn't smell right, they'll pass."

A great starting point, says Sid Davis, a Salt Lake City real estate broker and author of "Home Makeovers That Sell," is to spring for a pre-sale home inspection. At an average cost of $300 to $350, you can find your home's flaws, have a handyman fix them and document the work in a pre-sale buyer's folder.

Next: "Sometimes the retro look can actually help a home ..." >

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