So before you place a “For Sale” sign on your front lawn, take the time to learn from experts, read on the current market and real estate trends, and most of all, know what you should avoid doing in order to land the best deal for your home.

Here are common mistakes that many home sellers make:

1. Not knowing what buyers want.
Stepping inside the shoes of a buyer is always a helpful tip for any seller. Imagine that you are the buyer of the home you are selling. Would you buy it? Does it look nice, clean, and built to last? Is the price reasonable? Is there anything that’s lacking? Once you train yourself in this perspective, you will learn to ask yourself all the helpful questions that would make your home appealing to many buyers.

2. Getting the wrong real estate agent.
Many sellers fall victim into the hands of the wrong agent. Take time to look for the ideal and trusted one. Ask around. Once you have narrowed down your choices, compare them in terms of track record and their list-price to sell-price ratio. Ask how them how they are going to market your home and set it apart from similar listings in your area. You deserve an agent who can sell your property to the right buyer at the best deal.

3. Poor listing and advertising.
If you present your home to prospective buyers over the Internet, present it in the best way possible. Take lots of great photos of your home, possibly every area. This is your first chance to invite the buyer to take a peek inside your home. If there are areas, furniture and fixtures that need repair or replacement, do it early. A complete overhaul is not necessary, a refreshing appearance will do. Check if the walls need repainting, if the yard needs trimming, if the bathrooms need new accessories, if the living room needs rearrangement, and so on. See your home with fresh, new eyes so that you will be able to advertise it well and compete against other similarly-priced homes.

4. Failing to Offer Incentives.
There are lots of homes on the market right now, so you need to make yours stand out. Lowering your asking price is one way to help buyers take notice. Other perks such as a home warranty, a $1000 painting or flooring allowance or pay a year’s worth of dues at a local golf or swim club can sway a buyer your way.

5. Overpricing and non-negotiability.
Buyers go to websites such as Zillow.com and Trulia.com to get an automated and estimated pricing of properties. If your listed price is way too high compared to the valuation results, the buyers would most likely look for other properties. In order to avoid this, look around for similar homes in the area and find out how much they were sold. Keep your price reasonable and close to comparable homes in your area. Be open for negotiation even if you get a low ball offer, by giving a realistic counter-offer. This way the real negotiation can begin.

Traditional IRAs (tax deferred)

The contributions for a Traditional IRA are of the “tax-deductible” kind. That means that, depending on certain factors which include your income tax filing status, adjusted gross income (AGI), and eligibility to participate in a tax-qualified retirement plan through employment, the money you deposit in your IRA isn’t taxed. And regardless, whatever earnings you have on your contributions over the years the IRA is opened won’t be taxed until you withdraw that money many years later.

For example, let’s say you made $36,000 during the year, and you put $2,000 of it into an IRA. You would pay income tax on only $34,000. Additionally, your deposit will grow free of tax through the years. When you finally withdraw the money for your retirement (after age 59 ½) then, and only then, will the money be taxed as income at your ordinary income tax rate. Also keep in mind all money must be withdrawn from the account no later than the April 1 following the year the owner turns 70 1/2.

If you withdraw the funds before age 59 1/2, then in most cases you’ll have to pay both income tax and a 10% penalty on whatever earnings have accrued — but if the funds are used to pay for “qualified higher education expenses” or for one of the other 8 exceptions (including death or disability) then the 10% early withdrawal fee will be waived.

Remember that you can put just about anything you want in an IRA account. While CDs are a safe bet, they tend to have lower long-term returns than riskier investments – which means you’re taking a risk that inflation could erode your returns. Just ask your great Aunt Gertie how much things used to cost when she was young to get an idea of inflation’s effects.

If you are willing and able to accept the additional risks (i.e. you could lose money), you can invest your IRA money in mutual funds or stocks. Especially for those who have more time until they pull their money out of an IRA, mutual funds can be a good choice.

Roth IRA (tax free)

The tax breaks for a Roth IRA are different than a Traditional IRA. Unlike a contribution to a Traditional IRA, a Roth IRA contribution is never deductible. Taking the above example on your yearly earnings, you’d still be taxed on $36,000 even though you had put the same $2,000 into a Roth IRA. However, when you withdraw the money from a Roth IRA, none of it — and that includes the earnings — will be taxed, assuming that the Roth IRA has been open for at least five tax-years and you are older than age 59 1/2. That’s right – no tax on the entire account! All you have to do is to wait until you can withdraw it penalty-free.

In other words, the Roth offers tax-exempt rather than simply tax-deferred savings. While both allow you to accumulate wealth without paying taxes along the way on your profits, the traditional IRA ultimately sticks you with a tax bill for those profits (plus your initial contributions if those were deducted when made). The Roth doesn’t. As long as you follow the rules, you never pay taxes on your gains. So paying the taxes now before contributing to the Roth may work out to be better for you than paying taxes later on your investment profits.

The Roth makes great sense for people otherwise limited to making non-deductible contributions to a traditional IRA. And the Roth is fully available to single filers making up to $95,000 and couples making up to $150,000. It also allows you great flexibility by allowing you, in many cases, to withdraw your principal contributions at any time tax-free, without penalty. First-time homebuyers can also pull out $10,000 in profits penalty free and tax-free if the money has been in the Roth IRA for at least five tax years. Barring these exceptions, though, early distribution or profits withdrawn before retirement age and before the money has been in the Roth for at least five tax-years will be taxed, plus you’ll also incur a 10% penalty when those earnings are taken before age 59 1/2.

So Which to Choose?

The answer depends on your current tax bracket, your anticipated tax bracket in retirement and when you expect to begin withdrawing funds. Briefly, you will have an advantage from contributing to a tax-deductible Traditional IRA only if you can deduct the contributions from your taxes and anticipate being in a lower tax bracket in retirement. If you expect to be in the same or a higher tax bracket in retirement, then a Roth IRA may be preferable because you’ll be able to make completely tax-free withdrawals, provided you meet the 5-year holding period and have reached age 59½.

Additionally, in a Roth IRA, you’re not required to begin minimum withdrawals at age 70½. This makes the Roth IRA ideal for estate planning, since you can potentially leave more funds to your beneficiaries.

Why is this so?  And now that the US economy is ailing, will the Mighty “D’s” bring home the bacon?  Economists believe they will do so.  Democrats are geared towards the progressive economic philosophy.  To them, it is the government’s duty to monitor and regulate the economy.  It is their belief that government spending, e.g. deficit spending sets the economy as well as the stock market in a better form.  Hence, growth and a booming economy are within easy reach.

Of course, higher taxes may result from policies arising from such a stance.  The 2008 Presidential candidate of the Democratic coalition is a Robinhood in the making – he has plans to take from the rich and give to the poor.  He proposes an increase on tax rates padded to the wealthy and on capital gains.

Tax as an Answer to Economic Crisis

The majority believes that high capital gains tax hinders investors from betting on new business ventures.  However, some are inclined to think otherwise; they see it instead as an opportunity for small-scale businesses to reap higher profits since equity investors do not affect them.  Only the rich get targeted!

During the Clinton Administration in the ‘90s, taxes were raised and mankind had its biggest economic boom!   On the other hand, during the Hoover Administration, the rich were highly taxed but that created modern industrial history’s worst depression.

Raising or lowering taxes is actually not the gauge for economic growth or economic downturn.  Equilibrium is the key – a balanced policy wherein initiatives promote economic growth (i.e. encourage capital investment) even as they benefit the workers on the side.

NAFTA Out of the Table

Moving right along, the Democrats’ main man announced his intention to strengthen the nations’ labor and environmental safeguards by adjusting the trade policy between U.S. and China.  Furthermore, he says he wants to amend the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) because this contract does not put food on the American’s table.  Trade policies should protect the working class instead of being riddled with perks to be enjoyed only by big corporations.

Democrats champion the working class!  Democrats implement the Marxist-style policies!  Democrats want a proper distribution of wealth!  But would these be enough to bring light to America’s dark economic condition?  Would these be enough to cause a 360-degree turn and turn economic depression into a resurrection?

Based on past election turn-outs, whenever the economy becomes sour, the candidate from the incumbent party does not do well in the polls.  Remember Ronald Reagan’s overwhelming win over Jimmy Carter in the ‘80s or Bill Clinton’s victory over George H.W.Bush in the ‘90s.  Does this mean that the battle has been over long before it has begun?  Well, no party dreams of having a gloomy economy.  It is up to the voters to weigh the pros and cons of every economic measure set.  Who will lift the shrinking Titanic?  That is for the Americans to decide.