Think you know the facts about affordable housing? Think again. Missy Yost debunks five common misconceptions around affordable housing and shares ideas to help you get involved in your local community.

Smart home products are great, but how do you decide what stays and what goes when you're selling a home with these upgrades?

The metaverse is quickly becoming a platform, or a collection of several platforms, where you can advertise, socialize, build, and explore. It’s no wonder we’ve started to imagine how to bring real estate to this realm.

Fun things going on this month!

Now – January 22nd: National Western Stock Show & Rodeo

“Bulls and broncs, cowboys and cowgirls – rodeo’s biggest superstars perform amazing feats of athleticism during each performance of this professional rodeo. Showcasing the elegance and athleticism of the world’s top reining horses, the hard-hitting competition of Denver Professional Bull Riders Chute-Out and the Mexican Rodeo Extravaganza, this event has something for everyone.” Tickets & More Info!

Design Pics/Getty Images

The furnace is one of the most important appliances in your home, as it keeps you and your loved ones comfortable during times when the weather isn’t the most hospitable.

“A furnace is a heating appliance used to heat and circulate air,” says Ron Natoli, a mechanical engineer and building systems expert for Robson Forensics in Pittsburgh.

How does a furnace work?

The thermostat controls the furnace and allows you to set a desired temperature. Once the thermostat registers a temperature outside of the one you set, the furnace kicks on (or fires up, in the case of gas furnaces) and the air will move through the heat exchanger, which warms it. From there, the blower motor kicks on and distributes the air throughout the home via the duct system.

Most furnaces are fuel-fired and use propane, natural gas, or fuel. Electric furnaces work well in warmer climates, but if you live in an area where winter overstays its welcome, it’s cost-prohibitive to use them. In this case, you’ll want to use a fuel-fired furnace.

iStock

These flowers are a gorgeous addition to any yard, but they do require the right care—at the right time.

“To maintain strong, great-looking roses, proper pruning is essential,” says Jeff McManus, director of landscape services at the University of Mississippi and author of “Growing Weeders Into Leaders.”

“It is the key that keeps your roses healthy and vigorous while producing beautiful flowers,” McManus explains. Pruning also helps control the dead, diseased, and damaged canes (the technical term for rose stems) on the rosebush.

So if you want your roses to flourish, it’s time to learn how to prune them, and when these classic flowers will most appreciate a little TLC.

KatarzynaBialasiewicz/iStock

If you’re partial to mixing prints and colors in new, exciting ways, it’s a trend you might want to take for a spin. Boho decor, which draws its name from bohemianism, is an open-minded approach to interior design. It’s all about embracing an eclectic and informal mishmash of patterns and textures.

Below, our design experts share the quintessential elements of boho home decor and how simple it is to master this popular look in your home.

What to know about boho home decor

Photo by Aundra Skinner Interiors

Boho decor is bold, free-spirited, and adventurous, says Lotta Lundaas of Norse Interiors. Think design that is inspired by decor you could have seen in a home during the hippie movement of the 1960s and ’70s.

Year-End Reflections

2022 turned out to be a turbulent year for the economy. To start, the FED had announced that they would be rolling back their pandemic measures, in order to combat high inflation. What many did not expect was for Russia to invade Ukraine, which put pressure on world markets, including oil/gas and agriculture. Russia is a major exporter in both industries, especially in minerals used to make fertilizer. Ukraine produces high percentages of the world’s grain, iron, and steel, among other exports. Between interruptions to trade, political sanctions on Russia, and investor fears, this had a major effect on a world economy already reeling from the pandemic.

The conflict in Europe, among other factors, threw the U.S. economy into fresh turmoil. Stocks tumbled throughout the year. Although they bounced back from their lowest point in September, they are currently on track for their biggest losses since 2008. Inflation skyrocketed to rates not seen in the U.S. since the 1980s! This forced the FED to take an even more aggressive stance against inflation.

blackred/iStock

This is a question that plagues just about all owners of these sought-after floors at some point. Moving furniture, fierce stilettos, dirty soccer cleats, and plenty more can mar this surface, and make your whole house look more than a little worn out and run-down. Still, one of the best things about scratches in hardwood floors is that they’re easy to repair, especially compared with vinyl flooring or carpeting, says Brett Miller, vice president of education and certification for the National Wood Flooring Association.

Removing light scratches

If you’re lucky, light scratches will penetrate only the floor’s finish, not the wood itself.

“Surface scratches are caused by everyday use, grit on the bottom of shoes, or running a vacuum cleaner across the floor,” Miller says. “Anything that can run across the surface of the floor can cause scratches.”

If you’re in a rush, you can lick your finger and rub out the most minor surface scratches. If you’re not into the spit-shine approach, you can clean the area with a dry cloth, then rub a fine, steel wool Brillo pad along the length of the scratch, with the grain, until the scratch disappears.

Legally, a co-op board president can work as a lawyer for shareholders selling their units, but that doesn’t make it a good idea.

Realtor.com

The Highgate Manor is a massive Georgian-style estate in Highgate, VT, that is rumored to have once served as a stopping point for the Underground Railroad.

The sprawling, 8,938-square-foot home is now listed for $705,000. It still has a tunnel below that was designed to lead up to the nearby Missisquoi River.

Over the years, the estate has served as a dance hall, bed-and-breakfast, restaurant and bar, school, wedding venue, and, most recently, a single-family residence.

Realtor.com

Photo courtesy of CG&S Design-Build via Houzz

Are you staring at your four walls, wondering how to zhuzh them up a bit? Or maybe you’re building your dream house and need to decide exactly what four walls you want to stare at indefinitely.

We know. The choices can be overwhelming. Maybe you want durable interior walls (because you have three kids and a dog). Or maybe you prefer a certain aesthetic (because you’re reveling in your singlehood).

Most homes use drywall, which tends to be cheaper and easier to work with but can also dent easily and doesn’t fare well with water damage. Drywall can also harbor bacteria and mold. Fortunately, there are many different wall options that add texture, color, and character to your space.

So, here’s the 411 on what walls work best and where to put them.

Realtor.com

If you love gliding on the slopes but hate spending all of your savings on ski resort accommodations, have we got some deals for you!

We found five luxe ski chalets that are move-in ready, every one of them asking for less than $1 million.  It took some digging: Many of the nation’s most popular ski towns have become accessible to only the wealthy. A recent Realtor.com® report reveals that the average home price around Jackson Hole, WY, or Vail, CO, is north of $3 million.

Even the average home in a classic East Coast ski town like Stratton, VT, is listed at more than $1 million.

But after doing a little (snow) shoveling, we were able to find five fabulous homes in different parts of the country, each one close to ski resorts and popular peaks.

HGTV

Usually Dave and Jenny Marrs‘ home makeovers on “Fixer to Fabulous” are fairly straightforward and safe, but every once in a while they have to take risks.

In the episode “Family Farmhouse Restoration,” they meet Tim and Kenna Lee, whose three-bedroom, two-bath farmhouse has been in the family for generations. They want to freshen and update the home and have $190,000 to spend on the project.

However, they really don’t want Dave and Jenny to go too far, or to rid the home of all the family held near and dear. So, the Marrses must strike a balance between old and new, which isn’t easy.

“We’ll take something that was really special and change it,” says Jenny. “And that can be a bit of a risk.”

Getty Images

The nondescript, gray house where four Idaho college students were slain less than two months ago remains vacant, except for a steady progression of law enforcement personnel going in and out of the active crime scene. It’s a ghastly reminder of an unthinkable tragedy that happened in a college town on the Idaho-Washington state border.

While police apprehended a suspect last week, the motive for the grisly murders is unknown. And the future of the three-story rental house in the college town of Moscow, where the victims were presumed sleeping when they were butchered, remains uncertain.

The owner “does not have any plans at this point” for the six-bedroom, three-bedroom rental, says Merida McClanahan of Team Idaho Real Estate and Property Management. Her company is the property manager for the home. The house is still “in the hands” of law enforcement, she says.

The manager of the LLC that owns the property, 1122 King, did not immediately return requests for comment from Realtor.com®.

Pending home sales dropped 32 percent annually during the four-week period ending Jan. 1, with the biggest drop-offs recorded in markets that took off during the pandemic, according to Redfin.

Finding ways to rise above the noise and shine light onto a challenging market is the mission of every agent in today's market. Coach Darryl Davis shares eight strategies to help agents become a beacon of light for their clients against the storm of misinformation and negative mindsets

In advance of his appearance at Inman Connect New York on Jan. 24-26, The Agency's founder and CEO said he's always working but finds ways to unwind.

Catch up on all of the latest news and this week's most-read stories. It's Inman's Top 5 for the week of Dec. 30, 2022 through Jan. 5, 2023.

Brokers, agents and homebuilders tallied a solid hiring month amid the holiday season even as the downturn in real estate transactions continued, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.