(MONEY Magazine) – TIP 1

Real estate's wild ride

If you bought a McMansion recently, it might be looking like a big McStake. If you're buying one, however, you're in command. Either way, every move counts:

BUYERS SCORE A FREEBIE Skip the big appliances some desperate developers are giving away. Get them to pay your mortgage for a year, as some Florida developers are.

SELLERS SPRUCE UP SMART A new bathroom or sunporch won't recoup value as much when you sell as will cosmetic touches like a new tree or a fresh coat of paint.

HEDGERS PROTECT PROFITS Thinking of selling? You can use put options on housing futures--which appreciate when prices fall--as insurance against price drops. For example, a Boston seller could have recently bought five $750 puts (they're sold by stockbrokers and priced by city) for $3,750. If houses in Beantown dropped 20%, the puts would grow to $22,100, taking some of the sting out of a lower asking price.

TIP 2

Stay Cybersafe

In a recent study, 67% of people couldn't tell an unsecure website from a safe one. Worse, 43% said it's too hard even to try. But it's not.

• SCOPE IT OUT Be sure that the URL begins with "shttp" or "https" and that a padlock appears in the upper or lower right-hand corner of the browser. Scammers can fake one but not both, says the National Cyber Security Alliance. Double-click on the lock--a box should pop up identifying the company and encryption.

• PROTECT YOUR PC Some 81% of PCs lack at least one of the three core safety tools: antivirus software, a properly configured firewall and spyware protection. If these terms are confusing, find more info at staysafeonline.org or by calling your security software provider.

TIP 3

Check no bags?

If you want to bring toothpaste, you've got to store it in checked luggage. But baggage-check lines are a drag, so we got quotes for shipping instead. For pickup and four-day delivery of a 40-pound bag from New York to L.A.:

• Luggagefree.com $80 • LuggageConcierge.com $107 • Luggageforward.com $130

You could send your bag via FedEx for about $32. Or see if your hotel or airline offers service from BAGS Inc., which checks bags through from hotel to destination airport for $10 per person. Or buy toiletries when you arrive--but not at the expensive hotel store. Use JoeSentMe.com to find a pharmacy en route from the airport.

...Word watch: Boom flu en tials (büm-flü-en'-shels) n. Baby boomers between ages 50 and 60 who earn more than $100,000 and own their homes...

start

Ramp up your saving 29

In search of a lost 401(k) by Ellen McGirt 32

Aging parents, kids in college--and you're retiring by Jean Chatzky 37