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The real estate market in many Canadian cities has changed significantly in the past year. Gone are the days when a seller could automatically expect a bidding war for any house in a good area. If you want to sell your home in this climate, you have to make sure your home is ready to show off its best features.

Is painting the home in neutral tones the way to go? Is it worth updating the kitchen or bathrooms? Should you finish the basement or leave it alone? What about a fence? There are so many options, it's difficult to know where to start.

Our renovation expert Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson was online earlier to answer your questions about preparing your home for sale.

Now principal of the recently formed VIVE Home interior design practice, Liz has almost 20 years experience in interior design. She believes in planning renovations that are geared to each homeowner's lifestyle and wish-list, from a first time condo buyer trying to organize their 500 square foot space, to an experienced renovator working on their tenth property. Her Reno Adventures column appears weekly, both on-line and in print, and covers all aspects of home renovation.

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Danielle Boudreau, globeandmail.com: Hello Elizabeth, and thanks for taking the time to answer questions for our readers today. As an experienced interior designer, what is the most popular renovation request that you get from clients? Are most on the right track to add value to their homes, or do you ever feel you'd like to encourage them to re-evaluate their plans for resale purposes?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Hi Danielle. It's a pleasure to be with you and readers! The most popular request for assistance I get is for kitchens and bathroom renos, which is great because that's what I like to work on the most. I find that the majority homeowners today are up to speed on what will add value to their homes. People are starting to do their own research before contacting a designer or contractor. It's rare that I'll have to suggest a change in priorities. I do find, though, that people like to have reassurance that they're on the right track.

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Martha K. from Canada writes: Thanks for taking our questions Elizabeth. If we want to sell our home, which hasn't been renovated inside in 23 years, but have limited resources - $5,000 for everything (home is approx 1200 sq ft, already landscaped and structural components have been upgraded: roof, windows, etc), where besides painting would you suggest we put that $5,000? Most would say the kitchen but should we do half of the kitchen and say a full bathroom? It's hard to know where the value lies in the homebuyer's eyes. Thanks!

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Hi Martha. According to the Association of Ontario Contractors ( www.ontariocontractors.com ), adding a bathroom will give you a Return on Investment (ROI) of 96 per cent and a minor kitchen reno will give you an ROI of 79 per cent. I'd therefore put the majority of your budget toward the new bathroom and, if possible, try to make some upgrades to your kitchen as well. If your kitchen cabinets are in rough shape, for example, you can give them new life with a coat of melamine paint (high or semi-gloss) and updated pull hardware which doesn't cost a fortune. If your cabinets are fine but your countertop is worn and dated, replacing the countertop may be the best place to invest. Painting, which it sounds like you plan to do as well, gives you the biggest ROI at 200 per cent plus!

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Linda Sepp from toronto Canada writes: I'd like to know how to find a house that hasn't been renovated with cheap and toxic materials that ruin the air quality for years to come.

Formaldehyde, found in laminate floors and cabinets that aren't solid wood, has a 1/2 life of over 7 years, I'm told. Caulking can be toxic for years. Vinyl floors, windows, etc will also affect the air in negative ways. Some paints take a couple of years to offgas the VOC's.

I'd actually prefer a place that hasn't been renovated or fluffed in any way, so that any work that needs to be done can be done with the safest materials available. Any suggestions on how to find a place that hasn't had the air quality compromised, where the materials aren't offgassing toxic chemicals into the air?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Hi Linda. Your best bet would be to speak to real estate agents and brokers. Put the word out there that this is what you're looking for. You're not alone in your search for a toxin-free environment. As awareness of the dangers associated with VOCs and off-gassing grows, so will the number of homeowners who renovate in an environmentally conscientious way. Those who have done so will find that being able to offer potential buyers a safe environment is a real selling feature. Eventually Real Estate agents will become more attuned to this being a benefit that will help them sell homes. The more consumers demand a thing, the more likely market will be to supply it.

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Colleen Adl from Canada writes: My husband and I have separated and I am living at our 'cottage' for the winter. It is a 4-bedroom house, fully insulated with a forced air furnace. What is worrying me is lowering the cost of oil and having a heat source when the power goes out (I'm in rural Nova Scotia). I have 2 concerns.

Is it advisable to install a wood stove? From a financial perspective, it looks about equal. But how much value does it really add to a home?

Second, our hot water heater is on its last legs. I believe it is costing a lot of electricity. Is it worth having that installed? I believe any new buyer would ask us to anyway.

I'm going to spend the winter doing some 'staging' (painting a few things, cleaning out the basement). Do you have any other hints that might help sell a rural property?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Hi Colleen. It would seem to me that a wood stove in a rural home would be a great feature to have! I'm not an expert on them but you might want to ask your wood stove retailer to show you style options that would allow a future owner of the home to convert it to a wood burning fireplace if they wanted to - you know, by encasing it in stone or brick with a mantle. Some people prefer that look. The more potential flexibility you can offer buyers the better for resale. Ask the retailer also about installing a CO detector and fresh air exchanger. I don't know Nova Scotia's building codes but I do know that for new homes, some provincial building codes require them when there is a wood burning fireplace being installed.

Re your water heater, is it possible to rent one in your area? In many areas you can rent them for a s little as $9 per month. To replace it will cost you between $300 and $1,000 according to what I've been able to source on the web. I'd suggest trying to rent a new one and putting what you save toward other upgrades since you plan to sell.

Staging a rural property isn't much different from staging an urban home. If your views are special, play that up by ensuring windows aren't covered up during showings. Other than that, the basics of staging would apply: decluttering in general, painting walls and ceilings in neutral tones, rearranging furnishings so that the spaces look as big as possible and so that buyers can easily walk through spaces, and keeping everything spotless. Good luck!

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Mark Dip from Canada writes: Hi Ms. Rand-Watkinson, I'm doing renovations here and there (quartz countertops, backsplash, and putting hardwood on the stairs). I don't foresee selling for a few years, but the work is also with resale in mind. Until then, what are the upgrades for which I should inform my home insurance company?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Interesting question! I can only go by my own experience where we had our home reappraised by our insurer after renovating so that the replacement value of the home would reflect the value we'd added to it. In our case, that included some of the same things you mentioned - stone countertop and new hardwood flooring. I'm not sure but I think different insurance companies may have different policies on this sort of thing. Sorry I can't be of more help with this one.

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Mark Armstrong from writes: I have a semi-detached home in a desired neighbourhood in Toronto. It's currently set-up as a duplex with me and my family occupying one of the units.

If we were to sell the home, would we get more back, by doing a major renovation and converting it back into a single family home? Or is the best to save the money and hassle, knowing that prospective buyers may prefer to renovate it their way. Thanks.

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: So, it's already a semi detached and your half has been further divided into two (or more?) units. What I would have advised you a year ago is this: Based on the preceding understanding and given that the home is in a desired neighbourhood, you'd be better off to convert it a single family home. Buyers who have the money to be looking for homes in desired neighbourhoods will most often be looking for single family homes. Buyers who are looking for investment properties to rent out may not necessarily be looking in the better neighbourhoods. Today, with the state of the economy and the fact that the real estate market is now a buyers' market, I'm less sure of myself and I stand to be corrected by Real Estate professionals who will know better than I do.

Here are some questions to ask yourself that may help you decide what to do: are the individual units small and pokey? Is circulation within each unit tight or awkward or does it flow well from room to room? Do the units all have access to good natural light or are some compromised? Is access from the main entry to the individual units awkward?

And the big question: How easily can you reconvert the space to a single home in terms of major construction? For example, would one existing kitchen be able to stay where it is, as is? If so, that means the other kitchen(s) are simply subject to demolition. Or, are you looking at installing a completely new kitchen in a new location in order to service a single family home? Same with bathrooms - how many could stay as is with no plumbing changes and are they in the best locations to service a single family space? The rest would then just be subject to demolition again. Removing walls is no big deal. Where the majority of your budget will go is kitchen and bathrooms, replacing flooring, and electrical work. For cost ideas, go to www.ontariocontractors.com and look for their link to Renovation and Building Costs. You can also get quotes online from them for the work involved. Hope this helps!

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Linda Gumley from Vancouver writes: Help! Our home was built in 2001. The main feature wall in the great room, has a river rock fireplace (10.5 feet wide), with a clear maple mantle. The challenge is that there is a built-in gas fireplace on the mid- left side, and a 34 in. wide by 36 in. high built-in on the mid- right side, which is meant to house a big old T.V. and DVD player. Well guess what? Things have changed in 7 years, and potential buyers have large flat screen, wall-mounted televisions. Any suggestions on how to fill our gaping, custom hole so that buyers don't take one look and run the other way?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Hi Linda. What about having a custom carpenter build shelving in the opening? At 34" high, it could be divided into three open spaces with two evenly spaced shelves. Then have the carpenter divide the 36" width in two so that you end up with almost square openings into which you can place books or small objects d'art (one per opening space so that it's not cluttered looking). If the wood used to build the shelving matches the wood of the mantle no one may be the wiser that it used to be a TV "hole". I'm attaching a photo that sort of shows what I mean (minus the wheels, of course, and inserted into the opening!).

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William Holtslander from deep river Canada writes: I would like to know what are the most popular wall coverings in renovated bathrooms -ceramic tile, paint, tub enclosures?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: Glass is really big right now. I'm seeing a lot of the tiny mosaic tiles for tub and shower surrounds and backsplashes. Also current are the slim rectangular glass tiles (1" x 4") installed in a running pattern (a pattern frequently used for subway tiles). Both looks work well in contemporary and more traditional spaces. For floors, big rectangular tiles (12" x 24") are popular. Slate tiles are still a good look though the slate does have to be sealed periodically because it's somewhat absorbent.

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Danielle Boudreau, globeandmail.com: Thanks for taking the time to answer questions today, Elizabeth. Any final thoughts about home renovations for our readers?

Elizabeth Rand-Watkinson: I hope this has helped some of you with your renovation and design choices. I'm sure in some instances, your Real Estate Agents and contractors would have responded differently. To ensure you get the most ammunition you need when deciding on how to spend your hard-earned money, I encourage everyone to seek additional advice from professionals in those fields. And, when resale value is an issue, check out also the web site for the Appraisals Institute of Canada, www.aicanada.ca . They have a wealth of information on the value of different home investments. Also, as I mentioned to one reader today, the web site www.ontariocontractors.com is a great resource for what different renovation jobs cost.