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Be glad you live in the Triangle. In some areas of the country where scads of unsold houses flood the market, homeowners fret over ways to lure a home buyer.

Not to worry. Triangle home sellers don’t have that kind of problem; our real estate market, although slow, is touted as one of the strongest in the country. Nevertheless, many Triangle Realtors are doing more than simply advising sellers to clean, paint, repair, de-clutter and deodorize. Those basics from Homeselling 101 might suffice in a sellers’ market but when it favors buyers, many Realtors and homeowners do more.

“We are in a tougher market at this time — the buyers are very demanding and picky in their selections,” notes Triangle Realtor Cindy Penny. The Fonville Morisey agent frequently adds creative touches to her listings.

For example, while preparing a 1,500-square-foot 1925 classic bungalow for sale in Raleigh’s Five Points neighborhood, Penny wanted to showcase the kitchen and master bedroom that had a “masculine feel” and add color to the room. “I chose to put a tasteful abstract nude painting in the master bathroom and a nude statue in the oversized tile shower seat,” she says. Along with greenery, pictures and colorful towels, Penny’s decorative touches in the kitchen included placing an open recipe book and a whimsical ceramic pig holding a blackboard and chalk on the granite countertop. She also set up a martini-and-wine bar. On the front porch, the Realtor hung lovely ferns and added two white rocking chairs for a nostalgic feeling. The home sold at its listed price of $405,000.

In the bold red dining room of a two-and-a-half story Williamsburg-style home in Raleigh’s Salisbury Park community, Penny installed a unique glass-top carved table moved from another room and placed a striking red and black rug underneath. “I tried to neutralize it,” Penny explains, pointing out some buyers might not be comfortable with the predominant color. In the kitchen and breakfast area, a large wrought-iron glass-top table continues the flow and a floral centerpiece pulls it all together. The 2,500-square-foot home at 2009 Carrbridge Way is for sale at $365,000.

Some houses are so exquisitely furnished they require little embellishment. Like Penny’s listing in Raleigh’s Hunter’s Bluff neighborhood — a spacious 7,500-square-foot home on a 5.5-acre estate complete with granite salt-water pool and cabana.

“That home is so grand with the attention to detail that we just placed a few pieces to accent,” she says. Those include a large floral centerpiece in the kitchen, unique bird cages in the sunroom and a floor-to-ceiling mirror in the master bedroom that the Realtor moved from another part of the house.

The extraordinary three-foot metal pig sculpture she found in a local art shop and placed on the spacious front veranda complements its luxurious surroundings. Penny listed the estate at 8213 Inverstone Lane at $2,850,000.

Triangle Realtor Jim Allen explains his teams’s straightforward approach to getting a home sold. “We have to do whatever is necessary to bring the house up to show,” explains Allen, who heads The Jim Allen Group at Prudential Carolinas in Raleigh. “I feel that in today’s market you do what you can to make things work.” He points out that many single-home resales also face competition from new construction.

Before listing a home, Allen and his staff spend one-and-a-half to two hours there identifying “weaknesses” — everything that has to be cleaned, painted, repaired or replaced. Then, acting as contractor and/or subcontractor, Allen brings in the workers. “We use my painter and subcontractor,” Allen explains, adding, “I give them so much business the owners get the work done cheaper and it’s done in 10 days to two weeks.”

Before the $15,000 upgrade Allen recommended, Sharon Failer’s 4,700-square-foot home in Raleigh’s Old Creedmoor neighborhood was appraised for $575,000. After the work was completed — it took less than two weeks — Allen sold the home for $640,000. “It looks so great I really don’t want to move,” Failer comments.

A three-story home on Dunbarton Way in Raleigh’s Hawthorne neighborhood needed exterior and interior painting as well as new carpeting before it could go on the market for more than $220,000. Allen told the sellers he could get the work done for $6,100, which includes $4,500 for the painting and $1,600 to replace carpeting throughout the house. “They had gotten an estimate on their own and it was double the price,” notes Stephanie Bell, Allen’s listings manager. But suppose the sellers don’t want to replace carpeting and offer a discount instead. “The buyer is affected by the surroundings,” Allen explains. “When they walk into the house (and notice the worn carpet) they have an emotional reaction that is going to affect the offer negatively.”

The owners of the Dunbarton Way home agreed to let Allen’s contractors do the work and when it was completed the home sold for $239,000.

Realtor Gail Perry, an award-winning Re/Max United agent, occasionally offers gifts to be competitive in her luxury home sales, like the recent listing of a $1 million-plus estate. “We had to have an edge that would provide top dollar for the buyers,” she told me. Perry offered them a Corvette worth around $100,000. Bingo! “The seller was all smiles at the end of the transaction — the buyers got what they wanted and needed and we moved forward,” she recalls. The Realtor also offers other incentives such as membership in a Triangle fitness center and a gift card to selling agents.

“The slow period will definitely turn around,” Perry predicts. “Meanwhile, you have to think of what will work for the seller and buyer to obtain top dollar.” E-mail Iris June Vinegar at irisjune11@aol.com