A year or two ago, when a multitude of homes were on the market, many people couldn't be arm-twisted into making a purchase. Yet now that inventories have dwindled dramatically, things have changed.

"I've been working nonstop for 30 days trying to find houses for buyers. Multiple bids are common. And sometimes buyers grab a house before it hits the market," says Ashley Richardson, a real estate agent who's busier now than at any point in her 11-year career in the field.

Why the mismatch between supply and demand?

Richardson says many homeowners who tried and failed to sell their property in 2011 or early 2012 became discouraged and decided to rent out their property instead. Others have postponed selling because their homes are still "underwater," meaning they owe more on the mortgage than the place is worth.

Meanwhile, she says would-be buyers who've been waiting on the sidelines until the economy improves are suddenly out in force. They're paying more rent than they'd like and are anxious to take advantage of record-low interest rates while they're still available.

Are you a potential home seller puzzling over the timing of your sale? If so, these few pointers could help:

-- Seek to sell when there are few rival homes on the market.

Are few homes now up for sale in your area? If so, you may wish to go forward with a planned sale within 30 days or so, Richardson says.

"You're always better off being the only one out there, because competition drives prices down," she says.

Often, sellers prefer to wait until spring to list their property. But anyone who postpones risks the possibility of less favorable selling conditions, says Mary McCall, a veteran real estate broker and president of the Council of Residential Specialists (www.crs.com).

"When it comes to real estate, no one has a crystal ball. But I believe that by the end of January, For Sale signs will be sprouting like tulips. We're heading to a more balanced market between buyers and sellers," McCall says.

McCall says the most efficient way to obtain information on local inventory levels is to check with local listing agents. They should have access to the latest statistics and can brief you on trends.

-- Wait until repairs and de-cluttering are complete before trying to sell.

Do you have tattered carpet that needs to be replaced? Is there peeling paint on your front door? Are you still sorting through the contents of an overstuffed bookshelf?

Then make sure all this work is done before giving your agent approval to list your place, Richardson says. She says buyers typically show little interest in any home where renovation work is incomplete.

Likewise, a cluttered house can be very hard to market to prospects, who often underestimate the size of rooms ridden with excess furniture and cardboard boxes. Also, closets crammed full of clothes and shoes make a bad impression.

"When your closets are crowded, people think you have less storage than you really do," she says.

-- Avoid the weekend when selecting a day to launch your listing.

Richardson believes no one should obsess about the day of the week their agent lists their property in the Multiple Listing Service. But she says it's better to avoid having it appear on a Saturday or Sunday.

"During the work week, buyers monitor their email from the office for new listings sent them by their agent. But on weekends, they're often too busy running errands and driving kids around to pay much attention to email," Richardson says.

In her opinion, the ideal time for sellers to list a property is early in the week. Then, if the place still catches the interest of buyers when they drive by, they'll have sufficient time to plan a tour of the interior.

-- Don't play pricing games once you've decided to sell.

Homeowners who've given their agent the green light to list are rarely justified in attempting to "test the market" with a price that's more than five to 10 percent above the value of comparable homes, according to McCall.

She cautions that overpricing a property can add weeks or even months to the sale process.

What's more, sellers who start too high often find it necessary to cut their price one or more times before finding a willing buyer. And this can result in smaller proceeds than they would have gotten with a realistic price from the outset.

That's because buyer interest in a home usually fades within fewer than 30 days after it hits the market. And once a house has languished unsold for a lengthy period, it typically develops a stigma.

"Even though there are more buyers out looking for property, this is still a time to price realistically. It's not the time for sellers to get greedy," McCall says.

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

Joyce Bytof, a long-time real estate broker, has 23 grandchildren age 25 to 34. As a strong advocate for homeownership, she's on a mission to persuade all of them to buy a place of their own.

"So far I've convinced eight to buy -- which means I have 15 left to go," says Bytof, who owns a major Coldwell Banker real estate business in Wisconsin.

Despite her professional guidance on real estate, she says her grandkids are still nervous about buying and fear the impact of economic uncertainty.

"They're scared the economy will take a tumble and they'll become house poor. Once they get a mortgage, they worry they won't have enough pennies to go out and have fun or to have a family," Bytof says.

She reports that all eight of the grandchildren who've bought houses so far are pleased they made the move. One reason is that they avoided overextending themselves and taking on an uncomfortably large mortgage.

She tells of one granddaughter who recently bought a first home with her husband. Still in their mid 20s, the couple deliberately chose a place below their means to give them financial leeway.

For a mortgage payment only slightly higher than what they paid each month for the modest duplex they were renting, they bought a three-bedroom bungalow with a one-car garage and a sizeable yard.

Bytof says a sensible, well-planned approach to homeownership helps calm the anxieties of many novices. Here are a few common fears and how to surmount them:

-- Fear of revealing your credit history to a mortgage lender.

Sid Davis, a real estate broker and author of "A Survival Guide to Buying a Home," says many wannabe homeowners worry how their credit histories will be viewed by mortgage lenders. But he says such concerns are usually baseless -- even during the present period when lending standards are stringent.

"In my experience, 90 percent of these fears are simply fears of the unknown," he says.

Mortgage pre-approval -- which lets buyers assess their borrowing capability before they head out to shop for a property -- is now easily obtained over the phone. Even so, Bytof says some first-timers prefer to go to the lender's office for pre-approval.

"If it makes you more comfortable, go see the lender in person and ask your agent to go with you," she says.

Also, to ensure they're being quoted a competitive rate for their mortgage, she encourages all buyers to shop lenders before submitting a formal loan application.

"Credit unions can be excellent sources of mortgage money and sometimes run specials, as do small and large banks," Bytof says.

-- Fear of negative judgments on your home choice from family members.

Most first-time homebuyers are in their 20s or 30s. On financial matters, many still look to parents for guidance. But sometimes the intervention of elders can backfire.

"We've had parents blow up deals for young buyers," Bytof says.

If you're afraid to go forward without your parents' help, she suggests you bring them along on your house-hunting trips. That way they can compare various alternatives and will likely give you more objective advice.

But Bytof cautions young buyers against giving parents a veto over their final property selection -- even if they're helping fund the down payment.

"Assuming they've done their homework and had the property fully inspected, more young people should tell their parents to stay out of the final decision-making process," she says.

-- Fear of making a major error.

Because they realize that the home-buying decision is a major one, Davis says many wannabe homebuyers become risk averse, worrying they'll select the wrong property. And such fears are understandable in the aftermath of the housing crisis. That's because by now, almost everyone knows someone who overpaid for a property and then lost it through foreclosure.

"New buyers often feel they're walking through a swamp of unknowns. But a lot of their anxieties are needless," Davis says.

He believes the best remedy for home-selection stress is solid information. Work with a real estate agent who can accurately advise on the true market value of any property you're considering, thereby reducing your chances of overpaying.

"It's a good thing for young buyers to get a lot of hand-holding from a reputable agent -- ideally one who enjoys helping first-timers," Davis says.

-- Fear of lacking sufficient cash to go through with a home purchase.

Of course, it can be costly to make a housing change at any stage of your life. But Davis says many long-time renters overestimate how much cash they need to become owners.

Granted, no-down-payment mortgages are harder to obtain than before the downturn. But as he notes, buyers can still get into a first property for little or no down through programs offered by the Veterans Administration (www.va.gov) or the Federal Housing Administration (www.fha.gov and www.hud.gov). Also, many state and local governments still fund first-time buyer assistance programs.

"The key here is to find a sharp mortgage lender who's aware of all the options open to you," Davis says.

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

More than a million real estate agents belong to the National Association of Realtors (www.realtor.org), but a number have become inactive in recent years.

"The bad real estate market knocked out many bad agents," says Karen Rittenhouse, author of "The Essential Handbook for Selling a Home," and owner of a realty firm.

She recommends that home sellers search for an agent who is "energetic, motivated, self-starting and go-getting." Also, look for someone familiar enough with your area to recommend a list price that's neither too high nor too low.

"Pricing a house right is 90 percent of the battle to getting it sold," says Rittenhouse.

Although many sellers take a casual approach to choosing a real estate agent -- picking a friend or relative at random -- she suggests a more methodical method.

"You have a huge amount of money at stake when you sell your house and a strong agent can make a meaningful difference," she says.

Here are a few tips for sellers:

-- Interview agents thoroughly.

Home sellers are routinely advised to interview at least three agents. But Rittenhouse says most sellers hire the first agent they call and do a cursory interview at most.

"You need to interview at least three agents and go in-depth with your questions. Take the process as seriously as if you were hiring a nanny to care for your kids," she says.

-- Seek a straight-talker.

Michael Crowley, a veteran real estate broker who works solely with home buyers, says an all-too-common mistake involves putting an overly high starting price on a property to "test the market," and then taking the price down peg by peg until the place sells.

"Overpricing costs you in the end. By asking too much at the beginning, you actually lengthen your selling time and probably reduce your net proceeds," he says.

Crowley cautions sellers to be wary of any agent who proposes a price substantially higher than that recommended by the other agents they've interviewed.

Also, Crowley says you should be wary of any agent who glosses over the repairs and upgrades needed to make a house saleable for the best possible price.

"If your carpet is ragged around the edges, and the agent doesn't tell you it needs replacing, watch out. He's just telling you what you want to hear, not what you need to know," Crowley says.

-- Select an agent to help with mortgage snags.

Because so many mortgages have gone into foreclosure in recent years, it's understandable that lenders are nervous about making new loans. Also, they're facing increasing scrutiny from government regulators.

"There are now many more roadblocks before anyone can get a mortgage to the finishing line," Rittenhouse says.

Before the economic downturn, home sellers and their agents didn't need to fret much about whether the buyer's loan was approved. But now the lending process is so tricky that a listing agent may also need to get involved.

"A knowledgeable seller's agent who has mortgage contacts can help clear obstacles to get an endangered transaction through," Rittenhouse says.

Be sure to ask your prospective agents to tell you how they handled mortgage snafus when they arose in the past.

-- Choose an agent who's an effective negotiator.

As a real estate investor who is continually buying and selling property, Rittenhouse knows how much skill is involved in doing deals.

"Whether you're on the buyer's or seller's side of the table, there's a tremendous amount of negotiation that goes on," she says.

Housing bargains are harder to find than they were just a year or two ago. Still, many would-be homebuyers, as well as investors, continue to troll for deals. And these so-called "bottom fishers" are likely to offer a first bid well below the true market value of your property.

Sellers were once advised to merely dismiss such "lowball offers." But if you live in a neighborhood where the supply of homes still exceeds demand, you may want to think twice. And a listing agent who is persuasive can sometimes bring a lowball bid up to a realistic level through skillful counteroffers.

As Rittenhouse says, one effective way for the listing agent to shape a strong counteroffer is with a comparative analysis of recent sales of similar homes in the same neighborhood.

Rittenhouse says savvy listing agents know to attach a written analysis of neighborhood values to any counter offer they submit on behalf of clients.

-- Pick an agent with good interpersonal skills.

Crowley says many people underestimate the importance of choosing an agent whom they find personable. Yet it can be very awkward and uncomfortable to go through the entire selling process with someone you dislike.

Also, as Crowley notes, hiring a listing agent who's on favorable terms with others in the local real estate community can hasten your sale. That's because real estate is a cooperative field, and your home is likely to be shown to more prospects if your agent is well liked by peers.

"Make sure you find an agent who's popular with other agents," he says.

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