Where there is a boom, though, there may be a bust. Read any headline from your local newspaper, and you’ll see headlines such as “Bye-Bye, Housing Boom” to “Housing Boom is Leveling Off.” Some economic forecasters predict a bubble that may be about to burst. They make you wonder: am I missing boat?

Whether you’re looking to cash in on this real estate bubble before it pops—or simply wanting to move to a bigger home or move across country—selling your home can be more a nightmare than a dream. Not only do you have to find and trust a real estate agent. You need to prep your home for open houses. You need to haggle with prospective buyers. Not to mention, you have to worry about moving and selling of all of your valuables.

It’s almost enough to make you want to live in one home for rest of your life—just as folks did in your grandparents’ day. Then again, your home is worth a percentage of that $14 trillion. Don’t you want to see just how much?

As hectic and horrible as selling a home may seem, it really isn’t so bad if you break it down into a few simple rules. If you don’t believe us, read rules for yourself.

Fuss over façade. Your home’s future owners do not want to worry about repairs and renovations as soon as they move in. So make certain they don’t. Be sure to have your home immaculately clean before you invite prospective buyers over. Redecorate if your interior is outdated. And invest in minor renovations if necessary. You’d be surprised what a coat of paint can do.

Focus on fine details. Prospective buyers will leave no stone unturned when they visit your home. They will test every light switch, run every faucet, and lift up every toilet seat. Everything—and we mean everything—should be in working order before your open house.

Double check for blown out light bulbs and leaky faucets. Scrub bathroom and clean up any ring around bowl, tub scum, and any other nasty surprise.

There are at least three types of foundation that may be used with many of popular cottage plans available today. These are: a concrete slab on grade; a full foundation wall (or basement) around outside perimeter of building; and a pier type of foundation. Most plan drawings show pier foundations, because they are usually cheapest to build and easiest for amateur craftsman to construct.

If you have a level piece of property on which to build, you may want to use a concrete slab. It is fairly simple to make. After you have selected cottage or camp you wish to build, refer to foundation plan that is shown with it. Get over-all dimensions firmly in mind.

On your site clear away brush and lay out lines of building with strings and batter boards. The next step is to dig a trench about 12 inches deep and 12 inches wide around perimeter of building. If you hit some large rode, leave it. Taper inside edge of trench as shown. By cutting outside edge of trench square, you can use it as part of form for beam edge of your slab.

While you're trying to get crimp out of your back, have someone call local supply yard and have them send you enough gravel or crushed rock to lay a 6-inch bed under slab. The following table tells you how to figure how much grave! or crushed rock you will need.

At this point, while you are waiting for delivery of material, you will want to get all rough plumbing in place. This means that all pipes which will be permanently buried in slab should be put in place, connected, and tested.