Bill Gassett, a longtime real estate agent and blogger who’s persevered through many market cycles, has a message for home sellers this fall: Don’t be complacent.

“A lot of sellers, including those with a vacant property, are under the misguided perception that everything is rosy. But all the economic indicators are screaming that there’s real cause for concern,” says Gassett, who’s sold homes since 1986.

No, Gassett isn’t predicting the kind of foreclosure crisis that rocked housing markets just over a decade ago. Indeed, he isn’t even forecasting a buyer’s market. But he urges current sellers to avoid the self-defeating strategy of trying to “test the market” with a price any higher than recent sales have yielded for comparable properties in the same neighborhood.

“If you start with too high a price in September or October, your house could still be sitting unsold during the slowest months of the year, November through January,” says Gassett, who’s affiliated with the Re/Max realty chain in Massachusetts.

Accurate pricing is especially crucial for those attempting to sell a vacant home, which can prove challenging.

Why is it often harder to sell a vacant home than one pleasingly furnished? Eric Tyson, a consumer advocate and co-author of “House Selling for Dummies,” says empty properties can convey an icy feeling to visitors.

“This makes it extremely hard for buyers to picture living there,” he says.

As Tyson says, it’s often wise for the owners of a vacant home to spend a few thousand dollars on cosmetic upgrades. Also, he suggests they consider engaging the services of a “home stager.” This is a design-oriented professional who can lend the sellers a few key furnishings.

“You don’t need many items to make a vacant house look a lot better. For example, just a few pieces of well-positioned furniture, along with some colorful area rugs, can make it seem a lot warmer,” says Tyson, who’s based in Connecticut.

Here are a few pointers for the sellers of a vacant home:

-- Fix any blemishes in your vacant place.

Sid Davis, the author of “A Survival Guide to Selling a Home,” says it’s crucial for the sellers of a vacant property to enter the market in immaculate condition. This means they must resolve all the minor issues, so buyers won’t remember the stains on the carpet, the marks on the hardwood floors or the dings on the walls.

“It’s absolutely essential that you paint all the interior walls before the house goes up for sale. Use a light, neutral tone. I don’t care what the paint companies tell you. You can’t patch paint and make it look right, due to fading,” Davis says.

He also urges the owners of vacant homes to replace worn carpet and refinish (or replace) hardwood floors that need work. In addition, fix any unsightly areas visitors might encounter, such as a rusty spot around a bathroom leak.

“Go room-by-room with a clipboard and then make sure you handle every little unattractive thing. Otherwise, buyers could be blinded to the beauty of your house by the small stuff,” Davis says.

-- Position a few pieces of furniture in your vacant home.

Many “lived in” homes are overflowing with excess furnishings, making the preparation for the selling period one in which listing agents urge clients to declutter.

Ironically, the problem with a vacant home is just the opposite. It needs a few well-chosen furnishings so that would-be buyers can see the scale of its rooms.

Of course, you can always rent or buy furniture to outfit a vacant home. But Tyson recommends that a better solution could be to hire a professional home stager to lend you the “props” you need to stage your place thoughtfully.

“People balk at the idea of hiring a stager. But when you’re trying to sell a vacant house, paying for minimal staging could be money well spent,” he says.

Your listing agent may have good leads on the names of professional stagers in your area. Or you could consult the Real Estate Staging Association (realestatestagingassociation.com). Another option is to find an Interior Redesign Industry Specialist through the website weredesign.com.

-- Maintain your vacant home in showtime condition.

Real estate agents like that vacant properties are so convenient to show, without the need for complicated arrangements with the family living there.

“In my book, it’s a plus to agents that a vacant home can be shown whenever they like. But this accessibility is only a positive if its owners, and their listing agent, keep the place in excellent condition,” Davis says.

How can you ensure that your vacant property will keep looking its best until the day it sells? Davis suggests you hire a local teenager to handle the mail, newspapers and routine yardwork. But he also urges you to ensure that the listing agent you engage keeps a close eye on the property.

“Your agent should commit to checking out your vacant home at least once per week and preferably twice. And make sure you get that promise in writing before you sign the listing agreement,” Davis says.

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

Mortgage rates have dropped to breathtakingly low levels. That’s tempting many wannabe homebuyers to rush into purchasing mode. But housing experts urge buyers of retirement age to proceed especially cautiously.

“Waiting until the winter might make sense,” says Todd Teta, a senior official at Attom Data Solutions (attomdata.com), a national real estate analytics firm based in California. “Winter is when the buyer pool shrinks and homes have been sitting on the market a bit.”

Compared to younger buyers with school-age children and active employment, retirees are typically better able to align the timing of a home purchase to their lifestyle priorities. That frees them from the pressure to buy prematurely.

Another reason why older buyers can proceed at their own pace is that mortgage rates are unlikely to rise significantly in coming months, despite economic uncertainties.

Financial advisers encourage buyers of retirement age to make a property purchase only after considering the ramifications for their overall financial plans.

Spencer Sherman, the CEO of a financial advisory firm, says older buyers should avoid depleting their retirement savings when deciding how much to spend on a property.

“Diversification of assets is really the name of the game,” says Sherman, the author of “The Cure for Money Madness.”

As an older homebuyer, how can you determine your affordability limits? Here are a few pointers:

-- Take the time to do a careful analysis of your financial situation.

In the past, many people made home-buying decisions in isolation, without first analyzing how their mortgage payments would fit in with a comprehensive financial plan. But moving forward without a holistic examination of your finances could result in serious missteps.

Obviously, one way to develop a broad plan is with the help of a financial adviser. If you choose that avenue, look for a planner willing to work within a limited time frame and to accept payment on an hourly basis, says Eric Tyson, author of “Personal Finance for Dummies.”

When hiring a planner, Tyson says it’s also wise to select someone who is compensated on a “fee-only” basis, meaning he or she doesn’t receive commissions by selling you stocks, bonds or insurance products.

One way to find such a fee-only adviser in your area is to go through the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (napfa.org).

-- Reduce your outlays for financial advice by doing prep work yourselves.

One basic step toward the creation of a solid financial plan involves an analysis of your spending patterns. You need to know how much it costs you to live, both in terms of mandatory expenses (like health insurance premiums) and discretionary outlays (like restaurant tabs).

Unless you routinely track these statistics (whether with a notebook or a personal finance management tool, such as Quicken), assembling this information can be time-consuming. To avoid paying an adviser to assist with this grunt work, Tyson suggests you pull out your checkbook and credit card statements and tabulate the numbers before arriving at your planner’s office.

Those in their 50s and 60s who are considering a home purchase may also wish to prepare for a financial planning visit through the use of online retirement income calculators. Tyson recommends the free online calculators available through such investment firms as T. Rowe Price (troweprice.com), Vanguard (vanguard.com) and Fidelity (fidelity.com).

Retirement calculators can help you estimate how much you’re likely to have available to spend each month in retirement, the likelihood your savings will last through your retirement years and what you’ll need to do to make up for potential shortfalls.

-- Try to avoid overestimating future home value appreciation.

Sherman says many people in their 50s through 70s still have “a cultural bias toward buying real estate.”

Although he believes that any home located in a popular neighborhood will likely continue to appreciate in coming years, he argues against real estate as the centerpiece of any retirement plan. Also, he projects a slowdown in home price gains.

“Don’t expect home values to gallop along. In the future, they’ll probably plod along just a few percentage points ahead of the rate of inflation,” he says.

-- Factor personal preferences into the selection of a home.

Retirees wishing to make a move-up home purchase without sacrificing their future plans need to take into account their expectations for a satisfying retirement, says Darrell Kingsland, a 40-year veteran of the financial planning field.

Through the years, Kingsland has noticed that his clients vary widely in terms of retirement expectations. Some want to take exotic vacations and pursue expensive hobbies, while others intend to spend modestly. Some plan to continue working part-time as long as possible, while others would like to give up work altogether.

As an older homebuyer, why are your lifestyle expectations relevant to the housing decisions? Because your living standard could be a major factor in how much you can afford to pay for housing.

“Before buying a house, you’d better look at the big financial picture for your life, or you could develop a serious case of buyer’s remorse,” Kingsland says.

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

These days, wannabe homebuyers fall into two groups. One is spurred to action by dazzlingly low mortgage rates. The other is equally motivated but hesitant on timing, given indicators that could signal a worsening economy.

For undecided buyers, Kevin Simrin, the broker-owner of six realty offices in Oregon, offers sage advice.

“If now is the right time for you and your family to buy a first home or to step up to a better one, don’t let fear stop you. But be sure to use data and not emotion to avoid overpaying,” says Simrin, who’s sold homes since 1989.

Before committing to purchase any property, Simrin urges buyers to review data on comparable sales for similar homes in the same neighborhood that have closed within the last six or fewer months.

He’s also a big advocate for making any offer contingent on a thorough home inspection, which could allow you to back out of the deal should your inspector discover major issues that would be expensive to remedy. These could include significant plumbing, electrical or foundation problems.

“A really solid whole-house inspection can cost as much as $400 to $600. But it’s worth it because of all the protection it gives you,” he says.

Here are a few pointers for buyers:

-- Search for a neighborhood with positive appreciation potential.

To locate the parts of your metro area that have the best prospects for future home appreciation, Eric Tyson, a personal finance expert and author of "Home Buying for Dummies," suggests you start with a regional map. On this, pinpoint major employers, such as corporate headquarters and military bases, where jobs are expanding. Locate communities with top public schools. Also, identify areas served by popular public transit lines, including new light rail systems that cater to traffic-weary commuters.

“Meaningful local information, which you can find on the web, helps you ... spot neighborhoods where home prices should rise rather than fall in the years ahead,” he says.

-- Attempt to track the direction of your local market.

Comparable sales data won’t give you the whole story on property values. You also need statistics on the direction of the neighborhood market, whether prices are heading up, down or sideways.

Tyson recommends you ask your agent to give you statistics on the median price of a home sold in the past month versus the prior month. Also ask for median price comparisons on an annual and yearly basis. These statistics should give you a good feel for the trend. Then use these data when crafting a bid for a property you like.

Also, Tyson recommends you seek out a highly motivated seller.

“Despite strong demand for property in hot metro areas, it’s still possible to find sellers who have an urgent need to move, perhaps due to a job change, a medical reversal or some other imperative,” he says.

-- Factor in your “personal economy” before deciding what to buy.

Would buying a well-priced home in a strong neighborhood be a good financial bet for your household if your monthly mortgage payments are more than you can afford? Absolutely not, Tyson says.

Prevailing standards for mortgage approval remain rigorous. Yet it’s still possible for many buyers to qualify for a larger mortgage than their finances warrant, thereby placing them at risk of a future default. That’s because your lender doesn't have the full picture of your financial obligations and spending habits.

Before committing to any purchase, even to a small home bought at a bargain price, it’s always wise to review your budget and assess your level of employment security. Is your current job at risk? Do you have easily marketable skills that would allow you to quickly get another job if you had to?

“You probably have lots of job stability if you’re in a prime health care field. If you’re a doctor or registered nurse who loses one job, you’ll undoubtedly find another one quickly. But the picture is very different for people in many other fields, like retail sales,” Tyson says.

-- Don’t rush into a purchase under pressure.

Even today, there are neighborhoods where buyers were locked in fierce competition over available homes. Some properties are still selling just hours after going on the market. These are areas where offers are written hurriedly, perhaps on the hood of a car. In these select areas, it’s still common for sellers to receive multiple bids from buyers offering more than the asking price.

But in most places, buyers are gradually gaining bargaining power. And that spells opportunity.

“Impulse can be the enemy of an unenlightened homebuyer. Sure, you want to be competitive for a property you truly love. But always keep your hand on your wallet when you do,” Tyson says.

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