If the old adage holds true that says hemlines go up when the economy improves, then things are cautiously looking up for spring. At least that’s the fashion-omic forecast from a quirky yet historically accurate tool, the “hemline indicator.” Read more…

More help is on the way…President Obama recently announced an additional $1.5 billion in homeowner aid for the areas of the country hardest-hit by declining home values, Florida, Michigan, Arizona, California and Nevada are the five states that will receive funds. Read more…

Putting on your best…As a seller, you want your home to make a positive first impression. In order to do this, you repair, clean, and strategize marketing for your open houses, but home staging takes it one step further. Read more…  

The good news is, it’s a buyers’ market. The bad news is, it’s a buyers’ market. With competitive prices, low interest rates and a huge tax credit on their side, buyers are jumping off the fence. And if you’ve got a house to sell, there are things you can do to make sure they land on your side, Realtors say. Read more…

New home sales drop like a rock…Sales of newly built homes unexpectedly plummeted in January to their lowest level in nearly five decades, providing more evidence of the housing market's fragility.

Purchases of new single-family homes dropped 11.2 percent in January from December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 309,000, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Sales fell in every region except the Midwest, and the raw number of new homes on the market rose for the first time in nearly three years.  Read more…

 Just for fun, its time to get dirty  http://gardenpuzzle.com/