Design disasters can wreck a room. (Photo: iStockphoto)

Recently, I wrote about the design lessons to take from the putative design stars. This week? It’s all about the red flags, warnings and downright mess-ups.

Without further ado: The Design Stars’ mistakes and how you can avoid them. …Full Story

For those looking to rehab a newly purchased home or remodel an old one, 203(k) loans can provide some cash. (Photo: iStockphoto)

With the large number of distressed properties on the market right now, and a prediction that more foreclosures are coming, it makes sense that home buyers are taking a close look at these properties. They're great bargains, but some of them need major work. I highlighted this in a recent blog post about calculating the cost of buying a foreclosure …Full Story

The banal yard makeover on Design Star. (Photo: www.hgtv.com/designstar)

Have you ever set out to improve your home and ended up messing up your relationship?

Sure you have. The snits, the accusations, the cowardly passing off of blame, the cost overruns…

Yep, this week Design Star had it all, as the four remaining designers set out to transform a giant and empty back yard into a Zen modern escape …Full Story

Team Lang's Bad News Bears garage. (Photo: www.hgtv.com/designstar)

This week’s Design Star had all the hallmarks of really good—or really horrible—reality TV. People were throwing their teammates under the bus left and right. There was the confused, the tacky, the possibly homophobic and some great calls by the judges …Full Story

Ah, home improvement reality TV. How you lull me in with the promise of home makeover magic, and hold my attention with an hour of snarky remarks, terrible designs and cat fights. Right now, HGTV is my favorite on this front. I made sure to catch HGTV’s Showdown, Sunday nights, for the side-by-side comparisons of what second-rung design show stars could do to bonus rooms and yards in four hours. I cheered when on-the-brink homeowners Fabian and Lisa were able to save their home from foreclosure by out-designing their neighbors on HGTV’s $250,000 Challenge. And don’t even get me started on the fun of Rate My Space. …Full Story

Earlier, I blogged about the trend toward smaller homes, and wondered whether the trend would last longer than our current recession -- thinking that once Americans are feeling more flush again, we'll renew our fascination with large, luxurious homes.

Signs of the trend are evident, with USA Today reporting that in the first time in a decade, the average size of a newly built single-family home has dropped: from 2,629 square feet in the second quarter of 2008 to 2,343 square feet in the fourth quarter, according to Census data …Full Story

This year, many of us at Cyberhomes have resolved to tackle both major and little fixes on our homes this year. I'm planning to paint and decorate a new bedroom for my daughters (I've bought the paint, but haven't gotten started yet), while others of us here at Cyberhomes are hoping to renovate a bathroom, tackle some gardening and spruce up a garage …Full Story

This week, the folks at Cyberhomes will share our New Year's resolutions for 2009. Look for our home and real-estate goals for the upcoming year.

Caroline Dwan, Cyberhomes national advertising sales director

My resolution: To finish the update to our bathroom and make it an organized, contemporary space that will make getting clean almost as much fun as getting dirty.

Cost: I will budget $3,000. The double sinks and vanity should run about $800. We'll use the pre-existing big mirror over the sinks but jazz it up with a $100 contemporary frame. This will be our only DIY task. The removal and replacement of the old electrical light fixture will cost about $100 — we'll hire one of our electrician friends to do the project. Track lighting should cost around $100; new floor tile should run about $600 plus $400 for removal and installation. The deep grayish blue paint needed to create the contemporary zen oasis I'm visualizing will probably cost about $100. Because I have painted every room in our house at least twice and because I am not good at it, I will support the economy and hire a professional, which could cost another $100. I also want to install crown molding, which should cost $250 for materials and installation.  …Full Story

This month, the Cyberhomes crew will share what's on our wish lists for the holiday season. Join us for 12 days of great gift ideas for home and real estate buffs.

Marty Frame, Cyberhomes general manager

On my wish list: new roofing for my house and garage. When it comes to remodeling, people can be divided into one of two categories: those who believe in the Big Bang theory — they move out for eight months and gut the place — and the evolutionists (that's me), always futzing with one project after another …Full Story

Do you ever watch those real estate shows on TV where homeowners show a real-estate agent the improvements/remodels they've made to their home, and the agent tells them that they're likely to recoup all -- and most of the time -- more than the sum they've spent upon resale? On these shows, you hear things like, "You've spent $50,000 on your kitchen remodel, but it will earn you an extra $75,000 on resale." Hogwash.

These kinds of shows drive me crazy. That's because much of the time -- especially in a sluggish real estate market like the one we have now -- homeowners may get back some of the money they've spent on a remodel when they sell their home, but most of the time, they won't get all of the money back -- just a percentage of it …Full Story