Hats off to Austin, which was named the top healthiest housing market. (Photo: iStockphoto)

The fall update on the 20 healthiest housing markets from BUILDER and Hanley Wood Market Intelligence is out. Cruising through the list is a very interesting exercise. Nearly all the markets on the list have at least one of three factors shoring up demand – a major university, a military base or a position as a capital city …Full Story

Actor Brad Pitt has been a significant part of a green-building movement in New Orleans. (Photo: Bill Haber/Associated Press)

I just read this fascinating story in The Atlantic by Wayne Curtis about the emerging architecture in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina …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

When looking for a Realtor, do you search for someone who looks like you? (Photo: iStockphoto)

Daniel Berman wants you to buy a house from him. He can give you lots of reasons to trust him, but his primary selling point, laid out on his Web site is that he’s a vegetarian.

Really.

A San Francisco Chronicle blog post on Berman sent ripples through the blogosphere, where commenters scoffed, mocked and generally belittled Berman …Full Story

When my husband and I went house hunting eight years ago, I wanted a new home. I liked the idea of having everything brand new and not having to deal with dated décor, like old shag carpeting and wallpaper from the 1970s. I also thought that since my husband and I aren't skilled do-it-yourselfers, buying new would present fewer problems and less maintenance. (I may have been wrong about that. See post, "Faulty Flashing.")

Pros of a new home

When we found a new subdivision of 10 homes being built in the center of an established town (the site was once a nursery), we jumped on it. (Or, rather I went for it and convinced my husband to go for it, too.) …Full Story

Green improvement: Going solar to convert the sun's warming rays into clean, green electricity for your home.

How to go green: Installing photovoltaic solar panels on your roof.

Cost: About $42,000 (before tax incentives and rebates), installed, for the average home, says Lee Devlin, of Devlin Consulting Inc., of Greeley, Colo. Devlin writes for Solar Power Authority on energy related topics …Full Story

Looking for something to do this weekend? Perhaps you might want to try the 13th annual National Solar Tour, which will be held tomorrow in 49 states and nearly 3,000 communities across the U.S. The event is being coordinated nationally by the nonprofit American Solar Energy Society in partnership with other solar organizations.

Tomorrow, solar-home owners will open up their houses and even condos to tour participants, who will be able to learn how to go solar and harvest energy from the sun and save money on utility bills. As many as 150,000 participants are expected.

Tour participants will receive the SOLAR TODAY Get Started 2009 guide -- with tips, information and insight about solar water heating, photovoltaic electricity, residential wind power, ground-source heating and cooling and energy efficiency -- and a list of 1,650 installers …Full Story

Real estate professionals can get certified in green technologies. (Photo: iStockphoto)

While demand for green homes is just hitting the mainstream now -- thanks to rising energy costs -- EcoBroker International of Evergreen, Colo., began training licensed real estate professionals in green-home technologies more than five years ago. Those who receive the EcoBroker designation take courses on topics like energy efficiency, green mortgages and how to market eco-friendly homes to consumers …Full Story