Home prices are climbing again, and one of the nation's leading property valuation experts says now might be a good time to consider selling your home.

"If you're in one of those 'up neighborhoods' and want to move, I say go ahead," says Karl E. Case, co-founder of the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller indices, which track home prices throughout the country.

According to the latest index of 20 large cities, home prices rose in all the metro markets, indicating the beginning of a nationwide recovery for real estate.

"It's a real increase. The 'up' areas are really up," says Case, an economics professor emeritus at Wellesley College.

However, he cautions that within the 20 major markets there are pockets of both strength and weakness. That means pricing trends can vary widely on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis.

"There are now wider disparities in values than there were in past years when real estate was rapidly booming or falling," Case says.

The current neighborhood-by-neighborhood shift in real estate values is making it harder for aspiring sellers to peg the right asking price for their property. To avoid guesswork, Case says there's no substitute for a listing agent with an in-depth awareness of pricing trends in your local market.

"It's never wise to get a real estate agent from the far side of town," he says.

Here are a few pointers for would-be sellers:

-- Acknowledge the vital importance of proper pricing.

Sid Davis, a real estate broker and author of "A Survival Guide to Selling a Home," says that in some exceptionally strong real estate markets, buyers are beginning to cope with the reality of multiple offers.

He says the major factor fueling brisker sales in strong markets is that long-pent-up buyer demand is starting to be unleashed in those areas.

He says a skilled listing agent is a valuable ally to sellers who want to hit the target when their home first goes up for sale.

"Even in a strong market, asking more than your home is really worth is a big mistake. Most buyers won't even make an offer if they think you're greedy," Davis says.

-- Seek a general idea on value before looking for a listing agent.

In the Internet age, there are a number of websites that promise to give you a free and immediate assessment of your home's value. One of the best known is Zillow (www.zillow.com).

Davis says that such "fast pricing" websites can't be expected to provide you a definitive answer on your property's worth. Still, he considers them a good starting point.

Besides using the Web, another way to get a feel for the strength of your local market is to attend open houses.

"If people have begun to flock to open houses in your neighborhood, that's a positive signal," he says.

-- Interview at least three candidates before hiring an agent.

When it comes time to sell a home, many owners think it's wise to hire a trusted family member as their listing agent. But Davis cautions against choosing someone from your inner circle.

"Your home is your biggest asset. You have a lot at stake. Would you automatically hire a relative to manage the assets in your retirement fund, or would you search for the best expert you can find? The same principle applies when selling your home," he says.

Even if your family member has a proven track record in real estate, choosing that individual as your agent could be a mistake.

"Your relatives probably won't tell you if your place is a dump that needs to be de-cluttered or that it's worth a lot less than you think," Davis says.

He recommends that you interview three agents who work in your area to determine the right one to sell your house. Ask each to give you a candid evaluation of both the condition and current worth of your place. Also question all three on how they came up with their pricing recommendations.

"You want to see the actual comparable sales used to support their recommendations. In an upward market, it's especially important that these sales be very recent --preferably for houses sold within the last month," Davis says.

-- Check into an agent's track record on pricing.

Are you planning to sell a home in an area where property values are flat or still slipping slightly? In that case, it's unlikely you'll receive your full asking price at the closing table. But if your property was marked correctly from the outset, you should still come quite close.

"The idea is to hit the bull's-eye from the beginning rather than letting your house become shopworn," Davis says.

How can you judge whether the agents you're interviewing have a good track record on pricing? One way is to review a few key numbers on their past listings, such as "list-to-sale" statistics. These compare the original asking price versus the sum ultimately received by the sellers.

If the agent is routinely making realistic recommendations, there should be little difference between the original list price and the final sale price, Davis says.

"As sellers, you always have the final word on your asking price. But you don't want to hire an agent who tries to flatter you into going too high at the start on the premise that you can always make deep cuts later. That's a losing strategy," he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

In recent years, turbulence in real estate markets has caused many older homeowners to delay plans to sell. But as the housing recovery gets underway, all that could change in a major way.

Jan Yager, a sociologist and time-management consultant, predicts that within the next decade "tens of millions" of baby boomers will sell their current homes and move to different abodes more suitable for retirement.

No matter where they plan to move, boomers who've lived in the same home for many years will face the enormous task of sifting through accumulations and upgrading their property for market. And all who try to tackle this project need a strategic plan to manage their time, says Yager, author of "Work Less, Do More," a time- management book.

"Using your time wisely is pivotal to getting your house in order, whether you're working, retired or semi-retired," she says.

If possible, Yager encourages those who need to clear through a vast collection of belongings before selling to allow a full year for this project. But she's aware that most sellers don't have this much latitude and that they may need some help to expedite the process.

"It could be a good idea for you to hire a professional organizer," says Yager, who recommends that home sellers consider seeking a local referral through the National Association of Professional Organizers (www.napo.net).

These few pointers could prove helpful, if you are a time-stretched home-seller:

-- Acknowledge your limitations on time.

"People are beyond busy now. If you're working, you're extremely busy at the office. If you're not working, you're busy looking for a job," says Lee Silber, author of "Time Management for the Creative Person."

"Everything happens so much faster than before, making it hard to keep up," Silber says.

When people seek to add on to their already busy schedules all the work associated with a housing move, many go into overload.

"I've ruled out moving myself, because I know it would take months to get the whole project completed," Silber says.

Silber recommends you make a list of discretionary activities that could be cut from your schedule until your home project is done. For example, you might cut back on TV.

Rita Emmett, a time-management specialist and author of books on procrastination, suggests you reduce the time you spend on what she dubs "recreational shopping."

"For Americans, the No. 1 family activity is going to the mall," she says.

Another way to liberate time is to prepare simple meals at home rather than heading to a fast food place, Emmett says. As she notes, the drive back and forth to a restaurant takes more time than people expect. Plus there's the time spent waiting to be served at the restaurant.

-- Set priorities carefully.

Like many time-management consultants, Silber discourages clients from taking an all-or-nothing approach. Rather, he urges them to concentrate on the tasks with the greatest possible impact.

To ensure that the most time and money are focused on key priorities, he says your first step should be to ask a trusted real estate agent to walk through your property and advise you on the steps most worth taking.

For instance, replacing a stained living room carpet could make a huge difference in the salability of your place. But fixing the stains on your concrete walkways may not.

"Remember, you get 90 percent of your bang from just 10 percent of your activities. So always focus on that top 10 percent first," Silber says.

-- Create a work plan that suits your personality.

Silber says too few people embark on a home project with an overall plan in mind, and this slows their progress. But he also stresses that there's no one-size-fits-all approach to planning.

As an alternative to a formal written plan, he suggests that non-traditionalists may wish to make a visual "blueprint" of their property, marking in tasks on a room-by-room basis and then doing the work in the sequence they prefer.

"To help stay on course, you might draw a picture of how you want each room to look and then tape it to the door of that room," he says.

-- Infuse fun into the home preparation process.

You'll gain more momentum in your quest to ready your home for market if you can make an otherwise boring project more interesting, Silber says.

He suggests you might want to throw a "pre-sale party" featuring pizza and beer. To stage such a party, and gain help with your project, simply send out invitations for an event to occur before your real estate agent lists your home for sale.

"Surprisingly many people -- especially organized people -- like to make their friends' homes look better. They really do want to help you out, so don't be shy about asking," he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

He's a newly minted Ph.D. who recently landed a solid teaching job at a major university in a city he loves. He's ready to settle down and buy a condo. But after months of looking at real estate, he's still torn. Is now the time to buy?

On the one hand, he's swayed by the breathtakingly low-cost mortgage rates currently available to buyers. And home prices are still within his range of affordability. Indeed, he worries that recently rising prices could mean it's already a tad late to enter the market.

On the other hand, our teacher fears that real estate markets have yet to fully stabilize. True, home values in major cities have risen sharply in recent months. But the other economic measures, including the unemployment rate, paint a darker picture. Meanwhile, family members, including those who've lost equity in their homes, are urging him to be cautious.

This true story illustrates the still pervasive ambivalence affecting would-be homebuyers in the face of mixed signals about the direction of the housing market, says Michael Crowley, a veteran real estate broker.

"Given human nature, people wonder if there's a catch to all these good prices," says Crowley, the immediate past president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (www.naeba.org).

One result of the mixed feelings among prospective homebuyers is that they're less willing to engage in back-and-forth negotiating with sellers when counteroffers are involved.

Even after agreement is reached on a deal and the results of a home inspection come in, many buyers continue to demand concessions when flaws are found. Unless the flaws are corrected, they often want the deal to be re-cast or they'll walk away.

"Buyers still have a lot of leverage and they're obviously willing to use it," Crowley says.

Eric Tyson, a personal finance expert and co-author of "Home Buying for Dummies," says it's understandable that many buyers are still ambivalent about making a purchase, given the current level of economic and political turmoil.

Because all real estate markets have their own characteristics, and recovery is still stalled in some markets, he encourages buyers to carefully monitor market conditions in any area where they'd like to live, and to avoid waiting too long if they're seriously interested in taking the plunge.

Are you considering a home purchase in the near future? If so, these tips could prove useful:

-- Confirm your reasons for planning a purchase.

Anxiety can prevent people from moving ahead, even when it's against their interest to hold back. But those convinced that now is a good time to buy shouldn't let unwarranted fears constrain them, says Sid Davis, a real estate broker and author of "A Survival Guide to Buying a Home."

"If your job is secure and you have found your dream home, don't let groundless concerns block you," Davis says.

Davis says one way to put your fears about real estate in perspective is to re-examine your original reasons for buying. Have you yearned for a home of your own, but couldn't afford to buy until prices moderated? Or has your family outgrown its small house and you're seeking to trade up to a large space?

"Whatever your reasons for buying, you should be aware that waiting could be counter to your interests. In some neighborhoods, we're already seeing robust real estate markets where available property is starting to dry up," Davis says.

-- Find a skillful mortgage lender to help guide you.

As Davis says, lenders now want certainty that any mortgage they originate will be solid. This means you'll need to be well prepared to answer the lender's request for documents.

"To satisfy the lender, I recommend that even before you start shopping for homes, you pull together the key documents you'll need to show you're worthy of a loan," Davis says.

As proof of income, many mortgage lenders now insist on much more documentation than the customary pay stubs and W-2s. They may also require federal tax returns. Also, most lenders now want proof that the funds you've amassed for your down payment have been in your savings or checking account for some time and weren't just borrowed last week from a family member. That means you'll need to produce account statements verifying this.

Those who are self-employed can expect their lender to do a rigorous review of documents related to your business.

But the time you spend documenting your eligibility for the home loan will be worth it if your lender gives you a "pre-approval" letter. This you can use as a bargaining chip when negotiating for the property of your choice.

"Getting pre-approved makes you a stronger contender for the home you want. It gives sellers the confidence that they have a bird in the hand," Davis says.

-- Know your market, and make your decisions accordingly.

Many neighborhoods still have an unusually large number of homes available for sale. But in other areas, inventories are shrinking.

If you live in an area where many housing options are available, you can afford to take somewhat more time to make a selection and seal a deal. But Davis cautions against waiting indefinitely to buy in any popular area.

"If this is the right time for you to buy a house, don't be haunted by past problems with real estate. Times are changing and you won't want to be left out," he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)