Home & Garden

In her job as a real estate agent at William Pitt Sotheby's in Darien, Conn., Ellen Kelley sees a lot of homes. So many, in fact, that they tend to blur together. But several years ago, she visited one she can't seem to forget.

In an unexpected twist brought on by the nation's mortgage crisis, Habitat for Humanity of Charlotte has come to a startling conclusion.

Domenico Scicchitano has no need for famous foodie Michael Pollan, “slow food,” or any other trend that celebrates the way people long ago cooked and ate.

Q. We just moved into a renovated factory, and we are struggling with how to break up the space. Right now we don't have much furniture. The area is small, 550 square feet, with 14-foot-high ceilings, old wood floors and a large front window. Any ideas?

Q. My kitchen has a window in the south wall. I like plants, so I am considering having a garden window installed. Will one provide much space and are there any specific efficiency features I should look for?

In the 11 / 2 years that Ed Tuttle, 31, has tried to sell his unoccupied brick one-story in Oklahoma City, he has hired people to mow the lawn, regrout tile, stage the home, repair a squirrel-eaten hole in the roof, trap squirrels in the attic and fix a blown-down fence.

It's by far the hottest controversy in real estate this summer, and it could directly affect the value of your house – probably negatively – by tens of thousands of dollars.