By: Oliver Marks

What do you do when your family outgrows your house, or when the quirks you once found charming about the place just aren’t livable anymore? A few years ago, the answers were easy. With house values climbing an average of 50% from 2001 to 2005 and lenders handing out big checks to nearly anyone who asked, you could quickly unload a too-small house and use the profits to help pay for a larger one. Or you could borrow against that growing equity to fund a big home-improvement project, with the full expectation of making your investment back someday when you sold. Flash forward a few years, and the rules of real estate have changed. In this marketplace, with home equity shrinking and banks reluctant to lend, is it smarter to move or improve? Here’s some advice to help you decide. full story