Both the County Executive and the Planning Commissioner said they would abandon previous administrations' policies of publishing lists because it tended to drive up land prices when sellers realized there was an eager buyer.

According to Nancy Belknap, administrative assistant to the Planning and Zoning Commission in Wilton, even though the sellers of these units cannot use the open market, the sellers do realize profits in the resale.

Part of the problem for brokers is that sellers do not realize that the market is in transition, said Ed Ferris, a broker with William B. May Real Estate.

There are plenty of boom times left, if the developer doesn't over-develop, if the buyer is prepared to pay fair market value and if the seller realizes it's a different world from the high-priced marketplace of three years ago.

"The seller was an estate, and didn't realize the trail was there because the original agreement was oral, not written," he said.

WHAT TO BUY AND SELL - While it is difficult to tell from an occasional visit to the sites, frequent secondhand buyers and sellers realize not every gift card is a steal.

At the time when the knife was bought, its blade and handle were separated as the seller did not realize that both fitted together.

Although the vast majority of commissions in Manhattan are still at 6 percent, some sellers realize that, with agents starved for listings and prices strong, they not only have the upper hand with buyers, but with brokers as well.

"We've been trying to get this painting for a long time, and now the seller realizes that the market is strong, and this is the time to sell."

"Most sellers," Mr. Hulett said, "will realize there's some value here."