CHICAGO - In order to sell a home in many places throughout the country, sellers need their homes to outshine the competition, must be very negotiable on price and be prepared for a months-long stretch on the market. It's enough to make some sellers sit this season out, waiting for conditions to improve.

But some homeowners will take it one step further, figuring that if they can't sell their home they might as well make it more comfortable during the time they're living in it.

"There is a lot of attractiveness to thinking about staying put and making changes to the current home," said Kermit Baker, senior research fellow at Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies.

Overall, the center is expecting money spent on remodeling to decline this year, considering the home-price decreases in many markets, Baker said. But there is likely a substantial group of homeowners that will put some money into their homes anyway - granted they have the money to spend, he said.

Those who are following through with remodeling plans are saying "based on everything out there, I'm going to hunker down and make the best of my current living conditions," said Craig Smith, CEO of ServiceMagic, a company that connects homeowners to prescreened service professionals through the Internet.

In general, people are keeping their remodeling projects modest these days, said Mark Richardson, president of Bethesda, Md.-based Case Design/Remodeling and Case Handyman.

"In the boom times, three years ago, when there was more of an abundance of appreciation and consumer confidence ... you might have expanded your dining room, made it a little bigger," he said. "Today, maybe you're putting in crown molding, recessed lights or putting in a bay window."

The company is also noticing an increase in feasibility studies and design contracts, while construction contracts are slightly down, Richardson said.

To save on money, 64 percent said they'd do some of the remodeling work themselves and 33 percent said they wouldn't hire a general contractor, according to the survey.

While there is a lot of uncertainty in housing markets right now, that doesn't mean a homeowner has to sit on the sidelines, said Dan Fritschen, founder of RemodelEstimates .com and RemodelOrMove .com.

"It's not a better or worse time to move," he said. Your home may be able to fetch a lower price right now, but "the house you want to buy has depreciated too," he said.

Seems simple enough, but homeowners often have trouble accepting that their homes could sell for less these days, Baker said.

"I've heard from a lot of builders that households will come in and negotiate aggressively," he said. "But then when the household isn't willing to be as aggressive on the sale side of the current home ... that apparently jinxed a lot of deals."

It's also not a bad time to remodel, Fritschen added. There is an available labor pool to do the work, given the slowdown in new home construction, he said. And some people, frustrated with the volatility in the stock market, might decide an investment in their home is a better way to go, he said.

Trying to decide whether to remodel or move? Fritschen said that homeowners should consider both the financial and the emotional aspects of the decision - regardless of market conditions.

Financially, calculate the cost of moving expenses, real estate agent commissions and difference in property taxes - everything that goes along with moving. Then weigh those expenses against remodeling estimates, he said.

Also think about the nonfinancial benefits of moving or staying, including quality of school districts if you have children or commute time from work, he said. And factor in the inconveniences of both options, whether it is boxing up everything you own or living in a dusty home while it's being remodeled.

If your choice is to remodel, also think about what the project will do for the home at resale, Fritschen said. It's especially important to pay attention to how it stacks up against others in the neighborhood.

"Be aware of how much the home will appreciate - or depreciate - based on the remodel," Fritschen said. You may want a huge gourmet kitchen, but if that isn't the standard for the area, the improvement could be a waste of money, he said.

A calculator that walks consumers through the remodel-or-move decision can also be found at RemodelOrMove .com.