Home sales have dipped recently in what the National Association of Realtors calls the "tightening grip" of rising prices due to limited inventories of available property.

To keep sales buoyant going forward, the real estate industry is counting on homebuyers now in their 20s and 30s, known as millennials. But many in this cohort are living paycheck to paycheck and find it tough to save for a down payment.

To make matters worse for young buyers, the supply of "starter homes" has fallen drastically, even as prices for such properties have risen, according to Ralph McLaughlin, chief economist for Trulia, the online real estate site for buyers and sellers.

Sophia Bera, a certified financial planner, encourages young buyers to think seriously about taking a second job until they can reach their down payment goal.

"Try to earn an extra $500 to $1,000 per month with a 'side hustle.' This could be freelance writing, driving (for) Uber, walking dogs or doing two shifts a week at a restaurant. Look at the skills and interests you have and go from there," says Bera, the author of a new ebook titled "What You Should Have Learned About Money But Never Did."

She also recommends that young buyers consider slashing their spending on non-essentials and letting go of the expenses of car ownership by reengineering their daily commutes to involve carpooling or biking to work.

Eric Roberge, who heads a millennial-focused financial planning firm, recommends that wannabe first-time buyers consider moving back into their parents' home to cut their rental expenses, a step he took temporarily to generate the cash he needed to start his small business.

Here are a few pointers for first-time buyers:

-- First, get a grasp on your current financial picture.

One major barrier to saving for a home is uncontrolled day-to-day spending, says Tom Early, a real estate broker and past president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents.

As a prelude to cutting your spending, he recommends you review all your expenditures for the most recent three-month period. You can do this with pencil and paper or with such personal finance software as Quicken, Early's favorite. Alternatively, you can turn to such free online money management tools as Mint (www.mint.com).

A full inventory of all your spending can consume many hours as you comb through credit card and checking account statements. Indeed, Early says the process might take up to an entire weekend. Nevertheless, he insists it's a crucial first step for any individual or couple determined to reduce spending to buy a home.

Eric Tyson, a personal finance expert and co-author of "Homebuying For Dummies," allows that many young adults strongly resist the notion of micro-managing their money. But he says it's worth the temporary constraints involved.

-- Create a spending plan with home-buying in mind.

Once you know where your money is going, you're in a good position to build a budget that ideally should both allow for your core needs and let you start assembling enough savings for your home purchase.

In some categories such as restaurant tabs, you're likely to find a good deal of low-hanging fruit for pruning. But he says wannabe budget cutters should examine every area in search of potential cuts.

As you move forward with your budget, don't overlook seemingly small or relatively infrequent expenditures that can add up quickly, like popcorn at the movies or hot dogs at a baseball game.

Another fertile area for cutbacks? Your cable TV bill.

"I'm always astonished at the large sums people spend for cable, which can cost more than $200 per month," Tyson says.

-- Face your credit card debt.

It's not only student loans that hold back some potential homeowners. It's also credit card debt, much of which may have been acquired during the college years.

"Credit card debt, especially high interest-rate debt, is toxic to a savings plan. You've got to zero it out. I strongly recommend that people get out of all their double-digit credit card debt," Tyson says.

Of course, it's not easy to pay off large credit card balances. But doing so will help you in two ways. You'll free up capital for your down payment and, over time, you could improve your credit score.

Most people don't need a financial adviser to help them dig out from credit card debt, Tyson says, though you can find useful guidance through a book on the subject. One that he recommends is "Deal With Your Debt: Free Yourself From What You Owe," by Liz Pulliam Weston.

-- Beware of friends trying to talk you out of buying a home.

If you're a relatively recent college graduate with many friends who have busy weekend social schedules and expensive hobbies, you could confront a major psychological barrier to progressing with your own home-buying plans.

"When you're young, it's not a cool thing to be saving money to buy a house. Your friends may view this as fuddy-duddy and try to talk you out of it," Tyson says.

But he says those who allow their friends to dissuade them from pursuing homeownership in the next year or two might one day live to regret it, especially if home prices continue to rise during that period.

"One of the great things about owning a house is that it makes you less vulnerable to unexpected increases in your rental costs," Tyson says.

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

First, her husband died suddenly after a severe stroke. Then she lost her job. Then her financial planner told her she'd need to sell the house where the couple had lived for more than 20 years.

The 59-year-old engineer in this true story agrees that a move is necessary. And she's confident that her property, a custom-built place in a heavily wooded setting, will sell quickly and for a good price once it's ready for the market. But as a self-described packrat, she's worried about the enormity of the task she faces to cull through her vast collection of accumulations.

"If you're going to sell your house for what it's worth, it's essential that you clear away all your clutter. Otherwise, no one can appreciate the inherent beauty of your place or sense the size of your rooms," says Vicki Norris, an organizing consultant who heads her own firm.

"The problem is that very few buyers can envision a home's potential when it's filled with junk," says Tom Early, a veteran real estate broker and past president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (www.naeba.org).

Here are a few pointers for sellers:

-- Determine your clutter profile.

"Everybody who stacks their house to the rafters has their own particular reasons," says Norris, author of the book "Restoring Order: Organizing Strategies to Reclaim Your Life."

Norris, a former real estate agent, tells of a wealthy client who felt shortchanged as a child during holidays. As a result, she developed an irresistible urge to acquire Christmas decor and gift wrap in massive quantities.

Another woman who rarely cooked had purchased more than 100 cookbooks before realizing she was doing so to settle a score with her mother, who refused to let her cook when she was young. Though her mom had passed away, she remained bitter about this restriction.

Norris urges clients who are selling their homes to get to the root of their packrat problems so these won't carry over to their next home.

"A move presents you with a wonderful opportunity for a fresh start. ... You've got to change your thinking to change your behavior," she says.

-- Stop the inflow to keep the purging process on track.

Shopping is a hobby for many, who relish the thrill of hunting through stores for bargains. People often resort to shopping as a mood-lifter or a remedy for loneliness.

Continuing to shop during your de-cluttering process threatens your momentum, according to Diana Thomas, a professional organizer who's worked with many would-be sellers.

"At the very least, you've got to stop buying more of the things for which you have a weakness, even if you find them at bargain prices," Thomas says.

-- Develop a timeline and a step-by-step plan for de-cluttering.

Thomas says homeowners who plan to sell their property should allow the maximum available time for de-cluttering.

"Because it's laden with decision-making, going through your belongings can be exhausting,"" she says.

Thomas can spend multiple weeks to multiple months helping her clients cull through seemingly endless numbers of belongings. But that's a realistic timeframe for people who've long been packrats.

Professional organizers estimate that 2 percent of all Americans are "chronically disorganized," meaning they have deep-seated psychological issues related to the acquisition and handling of material items.

"For them, it's a much longer process to clear through their things. They might need a full year before they can move out of a house where they've lived a long time," Thomas says.

An increasing number of professional organizers are trained to work with the chronically disorganized. To learn more, and find out if you fall in this category, you may wish to contact the Institute for Challenging Disorganization (www.challengingdisorganization.org).

-- Approach the purging process systematically.

Most prospective home sellers can plow through their belongings without the intervention of a professional organizer, though the help of a non-judgmental friend or family member is often useful.

For those tackling the process alone, Thomas offers several tips.

She recommends you work on just one room at a time, or a small part of that room if it's crowded. Make sure you take an ample number of breaks to avoid fatigue, and don't pass up nutritious meals that help keep you going.

Do you find it hard to part with memory-rich items, like a collection of trophies your son acquired during his teenage baseball years? Then Thomas suggests you assemble your treasures and, before letting them go, take a photo of these to hang on the wall of your new place.

She says bibliophiles who struggle to part with an overflow of books often do well to donate them to an organization that will put them to good use. Other collections with intrinsic value, such as antique teacups, can be easily sold through an Internet marketplace such as Craigslist or eBay.

Thomas also advocates using a reward as an incentive to help spur your de-cluttering project. This could be a brief vacation or a festive party at a restaurant. But the best motivational tool for many people is to begin visiting the kind of home where they'd next like to live.

"If you must make an involuntary move, it's a lot more helpful to look forward rather than back," Thomas says.

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

Many retirees are counting on funds from the sale of their home to supplement their Social Security checks and sustain their lifestyles going forward. But how can they time their sale to maximize return?

At this point in the economic cycle, that's a tricky question, says Aaron Terrazas, a senior economist with Zillow, the real estate data company. Although houses are now selling quickly in many popular communities, some owners worry that if they sell too soon, they'll miss out on future price gains.

But no matter your decision on timing, Terrazas urges you to plan ahead.

"It's never too early to get a sense of what your home is worth," he says.

Here are a few pointers for sellers:

-- Don't wait to gain intelligence on the value of your home.

Terrazas says you may wish to interview up to three local real estate agents to get their assessment of your property's value and to learn what repairs and upgrades are necessary to make the most of your sale.

"Sometimes having more than one perspective makes sense," he says.

Those who get a head start on their sale can make sure they avoid a last-minute crisis that forces them to move before they're ready, says Sid Davis, a real estate broker and author of "A Survival Guide to Selling a Home."

Davis entered the real estate field in 1984, and in those early years he recalls how clients would typically call for help at least three months before they needed to sell. Now he says many wait until just a few weeks before they must move.

"Ideally, (agents0 need a minimum of 90 days or longer, even in a fast-moving market," Davis says.

Once you know you're definitely going to move, Davis says it's prudent to commit to the listing agent of your choice.

An agent with ample notice of your selling plans can better advise you on the steps you'll need to take to achieve the best possible outcome.

"Arranging for contractors on a non-emergency basis can save you cash, and careful pricing can mean more proceeds at the bottom line," Davis says.

-- Seek out data on selling times.

How can you estimate the time needed to go from list to sale?

Dorcas Helfant, a former president of the National Association of Realtors (realtor.org), suggests you ask your agent for statistics on the average selling times for homes in your community.

"The only numbers that count are the ones for your immediate neighborhood. Beyond that, the statistics aren't relevant," Helfant says.

Take these numbers, known as "days on market," and chart them over a six-month period. If selling times are gradually increasing, this could indicate a cooling of demand and should signal caution to prospective sellers.

"If you determine that your market is gradually slowing down, you'll want to allow yourself extra selling time to ensure a smooth transition," Helfant says.

-- Begin packing as soon as you know you'll be moving.

Davis contends that most home sellers procrastinate on the property preparation process.

"Even when they have extra time, it's human nature to wait until the final inning to mobilize. Most of us rely on deadlines to get going," he says.

Besides painting and repairs, nearly all homes need to be purged of clutter to show well. Your first step, Davis says, should be to remove any excess furnishings that crowd your interior space. Then box up smaller items and place them in your garage or a rented storage unit.

"By beginning as early as possible to clear out clothes, furniture and other items that you rarely use, you enhance your chances of fully completing this task before your place goes up for sale," Davis says.

-- Give yourself extra selling time when moving to a brand-new home.

Nowadays, some homebuilders are willing to sign a sales contract with a prospective buyer that's conditional on the sale of the buyer's property. This is a type of contingent contract.

"Some people, including retirees, get so wowed by a model home in a new development that they'll sign a contract before unloading their old place," Davis says.

A contract conditional on the sale of your present property may not obligate you to go through with the purchase. But if you can't sell your current property on time, you might lose both the new house and your deposits, he says.

Because it can take months to construct a new home -- and it's not unusual for builders to take longer than expected -- some new home buyers wait longer than they should before putting their property on the market, according to Davis.

"But remember, this is a one-way street. The builder can be late but you can't or you'll be thrown in a risky situation financially," he says.

Many real estate agents urge their home-selling clients to allow extra marketing time when they're buying a brand-new property with a contingent contract.

"The reality is that many homeowners, including those moving to a new property, are scared that if they sell sooner than expected, they'll be left homeless. Yet in most cases, that's a needless fear. In a worst-case scenario, you can move in with relatives or take a short-term rental," Davis says.

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