Homebuyers are back. But they're not finding many for-sale houses to choose from. This dearth of for-sale homes isn't imaginary. In fact, the pool of properties actually has shrunk in housing markets across the nation. Only 2.32 million existing homes were available for sale in the U.S. at the end of September 2012, according to the National Association of Realtors. That figure represented a 5.9-month supply of for-sale homes at the September pace of sales. A year earlier, the supply of for-sale homes would have lasted 8.1 months at the then-current pace of sales. So, what happened to all the houses? Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist for the California Association of Realtors in Los Angeles, and Rick Sharga, executive vice president of Carrington Mortgage Holdings, a mortgage company in Aliso Viejo, Calif., offer some answers. Sellers are on the sidelines.  Some homeowners have no reason to move. Others aren't motivated because they would take a loss at c...

Did you catch it? Today is NATIONAL BACKWARD DAY! Shake up the day-to-day humdrum with  Backward Day ! Try walking backwards, talking backwards, and doing everything the wrong way round. Are you tired of the same old way of doing things? CHANGE IT UP TODAY!! Do things backwards!!  Want to confuse people with text ~  http://www.togglecase.com/convert_to_reverse_text.php#results How to Celebrate Backwards Day Instead of waking up on the wrong side of the bed today, try waking up on the right side! While reading a book from cover-to-cover is always recommended, begin with the end and end with the beginning! Eat your dessert before the main course! And to kick things up even more, eat dinner in the morning and breakfast in the evening! Instead of eating a sandwich with the goodies in the middle, put the goodies on the outside of the bread today! Wear your shirt, coat, gloves and/or cap backwards. Wear your socks inside out, on top of your pants! As lo...

A mortgage refinance boom is in full swing, as homeowners take advantage of record low rates by refinancing their home loans, but a home loan refi is more complicated than it was a few years ago. Home values are lower and paperwork requirements are higher. It's easy to make mistakes while refinancing a mortgage. To help you avoid some of the most common errors, here is a list of five things you shouldn't do when you refi. Be unrealistic about your home's value Deluding yourself about the value of your home is an excellent way to ruin a refi. Too many homeowners ignore falling home values in their neighborhood, convincing themselves their houses are worth at least what they paid for them. In mortgage refinances today, the most common reason for denial is a home appraisal that comes in too low. The lender won't lend for more than the appraised value. And a lot of homeowners go into denial about the decreased values of their homes. Dit...

It doesn't take much to quickly update a room, here are some great ideas for the kitchen and bath: Color ~  Paint an accent wall — try a bold, bright color! Dedicated Workspace ~  Create a station for what you love — baking, crafts, you name it! Dining Banquette ~  With a banquette at the table, you'll dine in comfort. Bathroom Seating ~  A comfortable chair is a great piece to have in the bath. Try upholstering one in terry cloth or even putting a ceramic garden stool right in the shower. Kitchen Island Alternative ~  A pretty table and chairs makes a great alternative to an island, while a single large-scale lantern or chandelier hanging above it will punctuate the room. TV in the Bathroom ~  If you love a good long soak in the tub, hang a wall-mounted flat-screen. Low-Maintenance Rugs ~  Indoor-outdoor rugs are super-easy to clean whether they're in the front of the sink, under a table, or if you have young children or pets.   W...

Each of 2012's favorite bathrooms offers something different. Some inspire organizational ideas; others present creative tiling techniques, while still others make use of color and natural light.  1) Contemporary Bathroom design by Seattle Interior Designer ID by Gwen 2) Traditional Bathroom design by Boston Design-build ARCHIA HOMES 3) Contemporary Bathroom design by Portland Architect Alan Mascord Design Associates Inc 4) Traditional Bathroom design by Denver Interior Designer Chalet 5) Traditional Bathroom design by Boston Architect Frank Shirley Architects 6) Modern Bathroom design by Los Angeles Architect Griffin Enright Architects 7) Traditional Bathroom design by Philadelphia General Contractor Hanson General Contracting, Inc. 8) Contemporary Bathroom design by San Francisco Architect Mike Connell 9) Contemporary Bathroom design by Minneapolis Design-build Lake Country Builders 10) Eclectic Bathroom desi...

Some level of certainty and stability returned to the U.S. housing market in 2012, providing a solid foundation for the market to build on in 2013. But there are still significant risks that threaten this hard-won stability and could trip up some local markets trying to make the tricky transition from stability to strength. U.S. Foreclosures Continue Slow Descent At a national level and in states with relatively efficient foreclosure processes, foreclosure activity will not pose a significant threat to housing market stability. U.S. foreclosure activity will continue its slow descent off the peak of 2.9 million properties with foreclosure filings in 2010 and back toward a more normal level of around 500,000 properties with foreclosure filings a year – although don’t expect to see a completely normal foreclosure year until 2015. Foreclosure Flare-Ups Rising foreclosure activity in certain markets at the beginning and end of the year could threaten the stability in those ma...

The recovery in the housing market continues to pick up steam, as home prices posted the biggest percentage gain in more than two years in the latest reading of the closely followed S&P/Case-Shiller index. The index showed prices up 4.3% in October compared to a year earlier. That's the best improvement since May 2010. But that earlier increase was due to a temporary spike caused by a homebuyers' tax credit of up to $8,000 on homes purchased in late 2009 and early 2010. This latest rise comes as the housing market has shown numerous other signs of recovery in recent months. A combination of near record-low mortgage rates,lower unemployment and a drop in foreclosures to a five-year low means there are more buyers interested in purchasing fewer available homes. That in turn has lifted prices. October marked the fifth straight month that the index has been up on a year-over-year basis.  The improvement in housing market fundamentals has ...