The way I save money, is by paying myself first. I have automatic deductions come out of my bank account on the 15th and 30th of every month, which I put directly into a mutual fund for safe keeping. I take a small portion of my pay check, roughly 10% and put it away. This may not seem like much, but over time it adds up. In addition, with mutual funds you will have the benefit of compound interest on your side. You should EASILY be able to achieve 8% interest on average in a good a mutual fund, often times more. That's $800 a year on $10000!
Judging from the reader's e-mail it appears that he works for a major bank and is adamant about Buy & Hold and Dollar Cost Averaging. Maybe it's the approach he has chosen and he doesn't like hearing that the emperor is wearing no clothes. Nothing personal, honestly, but I find it incomprehensible that anyone, after the bear market and the financial disasters most people experienced, can even consider such theories. The results are just too black & white.
In general, of course, a seller has a particular mind set. He or she wants to sell their home. They want to get a particular price for it. Their emotions are strong. They have very strong attachments to what they are selling, especially if they have lived there a long time. Depending on what their reasons for moving are: divorce, death in the family, birth of a child, job transfer, etc., remember they are going to be feeling certain things. Put yourself in their shoes. How would you feel if you were in their place?