There are a few luxury items and a few not so luxury items that you can add to your ktichen to make them more convenient, attractive, and functional for your buyers. For and this might sound funny but a garbage disposal, people ask me all the time does this sink come with a garbage disposal. For the price and the functionality you can't beat the effect such a simple item will have on a buyer. Also another standard item that people love but don't always get is an ice maker in the freezer. Plenty of homes still have older refrigerators that are sporting ice trays ! Hey there is nothing wrong with that if its your house your already living in, but if you want to make a good lasting impression on the buyer spend another couple of hundred dollars. Go get yourself a fridge with an ice maker, trust me its worth it. Now two more luxury items that deffinitely always go well especially in higher end homes are wine coolers and an instant hot tap. A wine cooler can vary in price but top of the line wine coolers stainless steel the whole bit usually gont exceed 500 dollars. Its a nice touch to a home and people appreciate it. Also the instant hot tap is good for coffee, boiling water faster, and tea. Its an instant 190 degree spout of water rite off the side of the sink. Its just a cool little option that you can add to your kitchen before selling that just might tip the scales in your favor.

What is probably the biggest selling point of any house ? If I had to choose one and only one feature of a home that generally breaks or makes the deal it would have to be the Kitchen. A nice kitchen deffinitely sets the home apart from other choices in a buyers price range. Usually people would opt to have a newer updated kitchen, as opposed too say a bigger living room with an out of date kitchen. So follow the trends of the market when it comes to putting together a kitchen. For one stainless steel is huge rite now and in any home above the 200k range buyers pretty much expect it. Aside from that in more affordable entry level homes a stainless steel fridge and appliances might very well set it apart from the other options in that price range. Countertops, of course everyone loves marble these days, but if you aren't trying to break the bank on a countertop go faux. Often there are relatively attractive alternatives to marble and granite that most buyers would find suitable. Especially for the discounted price. So keep in mind a super kitchen might very well set your home apart.

Alot of realtors, or personal investors have been getting away from the practice of staging. I believe that it substantially changes a buyers point of view on the house. I mean that in a good way, alot of times when people (especially less imaginative people) walk into a barren house they get the feeling that it could never be their home. Plain white walls, no furniture, sometimes even no appliances; well that sets a dreary tone to the purchasing effort. It is better to get people in the buying state of mind. A staged house should give buyers the sense of ownership or at least familiarity with a property before they purchase. If a buyer doesn't feel like a house belongs to them they aren't going to wan't to have that house. It is really that simple. Stage a house and let the buyer see how beautiful and homey that property can be.

People don't really like to go second hand or salvage but its a simple way to caught extraneous costs. I'm not saying go down to your local garbage dump and start picking and pulling now. But there are specialty company's that sell spair home parts before the hosue goes up for demolition and for a serious discount. It takes a little bit of skill to pick out worthy re-usable countertops, fixtures, and hardwood flooring, but hey can you beat thirty cents on the dollar prices retail ? Didn't think so... so listen up, bring a friend, local contractor, or handy man that you are very familiar with to an auction or center that sells used home materials and get to work. Check for structural damage, chips, mold, and other unsightly ware before buying. Always trust the advice of the experienced expert or friend that you bring with you, because there is nothing worse then spending a Benjamin to try and save a Lincoln.

Alot of times people are faced with the choice of converting a bonus room into something other than a bedroom. A sure fire way to increase the value of a room to a buyer is to create purpose for that space. Other than just classifying a room as "bonus room" or "extra room" or the worst of all "a little extra space", create a home office to give the space a purpose. Also its a good way to enjoy a small room while making it attractive. Studies show more and more Americans are bringing their work home or working from home on a regular basis. Take advantage of this trend the next time a home is sporting "a little extra space"!

So the Senate passes the bill through again but I am really curious to see if it will make it through the house this second time around. It is very scary you know, it's hard to believe anyone rite now but one thing is certain: Times Are Tough. No one can deny that, plus it isn't like there is a magic wand can make the mortgage crisis go away, or one that will free up credit instantly. Or is there ? I am on the fence about this whole thing to begin with but this is what some Associated Press writers have to say about the matter:

Entitled: House Girds for 2nd try on financial rescue

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- House members are getting another chance to vote on a financial bailout bill that has infuriated millions of voters after the Senate added tax cuts and other sweeteners and passed it handily. Senators advanced the much-criticized measure in a 74-25 vote late Wednesday, sending it to the other side of the Capitol for a showdown vote expected Friday. The move was calculated to win over enough dissenting House members to get the bill through and reverse Monday's stunning defeat in the House. Party leaders there planned to press rank-and-file members Thursday for the dozen converts they believe they need.

President Bush will continue lobbying, too, with the argument that businesses are having a tough time financing operations and payroll and need help. A day ahead of the House vote, Bush called business leaders to the White House on Thursday to make his case for the $700-billion package.

"The president will note how important it is to pass the financial rescue legislation to help to free up credit in our economy," said White House spokesman Tony Fratto. "These business owners know the consequences if the situation gets worse, so the crisis is urgent for these businesses."

On another front, the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, urged people to remain calm.

"I think overall the banking system remains very sound so that's why I think it's so important for everybody to keep their head," commission Chairman Sheila Bair said on C-SPAN. "What I don't want is to see otherwise healthy institutions start to get into trouble just because of liquidity pressure ... Wall Street should be taking their cue from Main Street right now. Main Street deposits are staying there."

But the drumbeat of bad news rattled on, nevertheless. A government report said that orders to U.S. factories plunged by the largest amount in nearly two years as the credit strains smashed manufacturers with hurricane-like force.

Stocks declined on Wall Street early Thursday after the number of people seeking unemployment benefits rose last week to a seven-year high. The Dow Jones industrials fell by about 135 points, their fourth straight triple-digit move.

The bailout package was never in danger in the Senate. Senators instead played catalysts for the House, adding tax provisions popular with the left and right in a bid that House leaders hope -- but cannot guarantee -- will persuade enough of the House rank-and-file to switch from "nay" to "aye" on a highly contentious bill a month before Election Day.

They were especially targeting the 133 House Republicans who voted against the package.

Rep. David Dreier, R-Calif., said Thursday he will vote for the bill, as he did Monday, despite some misgivings.

"I will tell you, the American people are angy and frustrated," he said on ABC's "Good Morning America," saying he's been hearing messages like "the woman who said she was concerned about getting access to a student loan for her daughter."

Rep. Marcy Kaptur, an Ohio Democrat, said on the same program that she plans to vote no.

"I will not support this legislation because it's the wrong medicine," she said. Kaptur argued that the problem should be solved by the market itself, not through governmental intervention.

After the Senate vote, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said, "We've sent a clear message to Americans all over that we will not let this economy fail. This is not a piece of legislation for lower Manhattan. This is legislation for all America."

The rescue package would let the government spend billions of dollars to buy bad mortgage-related securities and other devalued assets held by troubled financial institutions. If successful, advocates say, that would allow frozen credit to begin flowing again and prevent a serious recession.

To some degree, at least, House GOP opposition appeared to be easing as the Senate added $100 billion in tax breaks for businesses and the middle class, plus a provision to raise, from $100,000 to $250,000, the cap on federal deposit insurance.

House Republicans also welcomed a decision Tuesday by the Securities and Exchange Commission to ease rules that force companies to devalue assets on their balance sheets to reflect the price they can get on the market.

There were worries, though, that the tax breaks might cause some conservative-leaning Democrats who voted for the rescue Monday to abandon it because the revised version would swell the federal deficit.

"I'm concerned about that," said Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the Democratic leader.

The Senate-backed package extends several tax breaks popular with businesses. It would keep the alternative minimum tax from hitting 20 million middle-income Americans. And it would provide $8 billion in tax relief for those hit by natural disasters in the Midwest, Texas and Louisiana.

Leaders in both parties, as well as private economic chiefs almost everywhere, said Congress must quickly approve some version of the bailout measure to start loans flowing and stave off a potential national economic disaster.

But critics on the right and left assailed the rescue plan, which has been panned by their constituents as a giveaway for Wall Street with little obvious benefit for ordinary Americans.

Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., a leading conservative, said the step was "leading us into the pit of socialism."

But proponents argued that the financial sector's woes already were being felt by ordinary people in the form of unaffordable credit and underperforming retirement savings. Still, they said voters were unlikely to reward those who vote for the measure.

"There will be no balloons or bunting or parades" when the rescue becomes law, said Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., the Senate Banking Committee chairman.

Tax cuts new and old are favorites for most House Republicans. Help for rural schools was aimed mainly at lawmakers in the West, while disaster aid was a top priority for lawmakers from across the Midwest and South.

Another addition, to extend the deductibility of state and local taxes for people in states without income taxes, helps Florida and Texas, among others.

Increasing the deposit insurance cap was a bid to reassure individuals and small businesses that their money would be safe in the event their banks collapsed. It was particularly geared toward small banks that fear customers will pull their money and park it in larger institutions seen as less likely to fold.

The Senate vote lacked the drama of Monday's House vote, but it had its celebrity moments. Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and his GOP rival, John McCain, came off the campaign trail to vote for the package, thrilling tourists who glimpsed them in the Capitol's corridors and drawing hordes of reporters and photographers.

AP White House Correspondent Terence Hunt contributed to this story."

This aricle was by: Charles Babington and Julie Hirschfeld Davis