The lag in today's real estate market is enough to make home sellers want to hide in a closet.

It can be stressful and frustrating for sellers, who face a real potential for ending up holding the short end of the stick.

That's because buyers, in many cases, have the upper hand during a housing slump, when inventory is high and demand for homes is low.

OnLineHouseTraders.com can help sellers find buyers and vice versa. It's an online matchmaker for home buyers and sellers.

It connects buyers and sellers by searching its database for someone looking to buy a house like yours, and at the same time, who is also selling one you want.

Similar to online dating services, the Web site connects buyers and sellers using information users provide about their wants and needs in a home. It asks for information as basic as "What you are selling" and "What you are looking to buy."

When buying and selling homes, there is inevitably a maze of things to consider: What do you do if your home sells before your dream home comes along? What if you close on a new home before you've had time to sell your old one? Are two mortgages in the cards?

For these questions, OnLineHouseTraders.com is on the job. It takes into consideration four minimum requirements for compatibility: property type, price range, location of the home, and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms.

If a match is made, the Web site sends a notification to users through e-mail and through their onlinehousetraders.com accounts.

OnLineHouseTraders.com charges a one-time fee of $19.95 for each property up for sale, and it keeps your home in the site's database until you find a new home and sell your old one. That's cheaper than paying a real estate agent any day.

And it doesn't have to be a local match, either. It works for people who are moving out of the community or even out of the state.

It's a house-selling tool you can feel at home with.