Small projects that pay off big

(Money Magazine) -- Hoping to sell this spring? Then you may want to put these winter weekends to good use by fixing up a few rooms. Prices are softening, homes are sitting longer. You need a leg up.

"You're competing with new developments, and builders have really thought through what details impress buyers," says agent Katherine Camp of Prudential Douglas Elliman in New York City.

Because you're unlikely to recoup full renovation costs these days, bypass a contractor and focus instead on what you can do yourself, in rooms buyers pay the most attention to.

These five projects should get your house noticed - and snapped up sooner. "Sellers who don't offer these kinds of touches may find their homes languish on the market," says Camp.

See gallery of projects