Posted: Mar. 8, 2012 | 2:03 a.m.

Remember the days when you tore pictures of your dream home out of magazines, stuffed them in a drawer and scrambled to find the right one when you were ready to begin a remodeling project?

Just as listening to music or talking on the telephone has gone high-tech, so has finding the right look for your home. Welcome to Houzz.

Houzz is an online site where you can find pictures and put them in a personal ideabook so they are readily available with just the click of your mouse. The site has more than 300,000 magazine-quality photos, uploaded by design and decorating professionals.

Liza Hausman, vice president of marketing for Houzz, describes it as a free website and mobile application that brings together homeowners and remodeling professionals using technology.

"There are a few ways you can use the site," she said. "The way most people start is to use it for inspiration and to help define their style. They can browse all the photos or, if they are doing a living room, they can sort by living room and just look at living room photos."

Hausman said the photographs also can be filtered by style, such as traditional, contemporary or transitional. In addition, you can tailor your view by city.

"As they discover photos they like, the can save them in an ideabook. It's what we used to do when we ripped photos from a magazine and put them in a manila folder," she said.

Since the ideabooks are online, they can be easily shared with a spouse or professional collaborator. There's also a place to comment about what they like and don't like about each photo.

"It's a key communication tool within families ... they say they don't need marriage counselors," Hausman said.

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Welcome To My Houzz

07-03-2012 12:47 When you need a general contractor in Farwell, MN, come to Lifetime Homes Inc. We have many years of experience providing an array of services such as Home Renovations, House Remodeling and much more. We have the resources necessary to get the job done right! We pride ourselves on our excellent service and our affordable rates. For a great service in Farwell, MN, call on Lifetime Homes Inc.

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General Contractor, Home Renovations in Farwell MN 56327 - Video

07-03-2012 13:15 suncoastsd.com Straightforward ad about your skills at helping customers remodel or refurbish their home, whether for a single room or several. New housing costs have you overwhelmed? Why not spruce up your existing home with help from the experts? With the proper skills, tools and experience, we specialize in a wide range of remodeling and renovation services. We work with you to create an exciting design, then our experienced and knowledgeable crews work quickly to complete the job to your satisfaction, while maintaining a high standard of excellence. Whether you want to remodel a single room or your entire home, call us today.

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Sun Coast Remodelers - Video

A former vendor who pleaded guilty to taking part in a kickback scheme by performing home improvements for former staffers at the Memorial Healthcare System was sentenced to 10 months in federal prison on Tuesday.

Joseph Badalich, 67, of Hollywood admitted that he tacked on an extra $70,000 to a bill for remodeling the interior of the Cystic Fibrosis Center at the taxpayer-assisted Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. The money was in exchange for insider help in getting awarded lucrative contracts, prosecutors said.

Badalich used the money to pay for marble floors installed at the Lake Worth home of hospital maintenance manager, Eliot Gordon. Badalich also converted a garage into a game room for another maintenance manager, Anthony Merola, who also lived in Lake Worth. Gordon and Merola are both serving federal prison terms for related crimes.

Badalich, who pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe an agent of an organization receiving federal funds, has to turn himself in to begin serving his prison sentence on April 9. He was also ordered to pay $457,274 in restitution during the sentencing in federal court in Miami. He had faced up to five years in prison but agreed to cooperate with prosecutors and testified at trial against other members of the conspiracy, according to court records.

pmcmahon@tribune.com, 954-356-4533 or Twitter @SentinelPaula

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Former Memorial hospital vendor sentenced in home remodeling bribery scheme

Travelers heading to the 2012 Home Design and Remodeling Show in Miami are searching for private vacation rentals instead of hotel rooms this year. John Romano of Fort Lauderdale Vacation Rentals says the online site is experiencing higher traffic than last year from people searching for home-away-from-home accommodations.

Miami, Florida (PRWEB) March 05, 2012

At a time when many travelers are looking to save money and demand for Miami vacation rental condos and homes increases, more and more visitors are booking their accommodations online through FtLauderdaleVacationRentals.com. Private property owners in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood Beach area are making their vacation homes available to visitors in increasing numbers, particularly heading into the spring tourist season.

Fort Lauderdale Vacation Rentals offers a comprehensive listing of vacation rental homes in the Fort Lauderdale Miami area. FtLauderdaleVacationRentals.com provides a single gateway for people planning their South Florida vacations with a variety of available condos, villas, townhomes and estate homes to choose from.

Among the perks of staying in a Fort Lauderdale Vacation Rental condo or home is the privacy that comes with renting directly from the property owner. Fort Lauderdale Vacation Rentals offer a full kitchen, laundry room, and all the comforts of a home that make traveling easier and more enjoyable.

FtLauderdaleVacationRentals.com has grown rapidly in popularity as more and more property owners and travelers become familiar with this opportunity to connect for a mutually beneficial cause, Romano said.

Fort Lauderdale Vacation Rental homes, condos, chalets, cottages, and apartments are increasing in popularity every year, and we provide a conduit for property owners and travelers to connect.

Many visitors traveling to the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area for the Home Design and Remodeling Show plan to stay the weekend or the week to enjoy the areas beaches and other attractions. By booking a vacation home rental in Miami or Fort Lauderdale, they can stay and enjoy the Florida sun and surf much more affordably and with more amenities than a hotel can offer.

About Ft. Lauderdale Vacation Rentals:

FtLauderdaleVacationRentals.com is the world's first portal dedicated only to vacation rentals in Fort Lauderdale. Established in 2006 and acquired by Vacation Rental Organization, LLC in 2010, Ft Lauderdale Vacation Rentals mission is to provide a selection of vacation rentals in Fort Lauderdale and to connect travelers with property owners in the most efficient way possible.

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Visitors to the Spring 2012 Home Design and Remodeling Show in Miami are Booking Accommodations Through Fort ...

SENTINEL & ENTERPRISE PHOTOS/John Love Leominster Police Chief Robert Healey gave a tour of the old Leominster National Plastics Center & Museum that officials are thinking of renovating to use as part of the police station. The chief stands on the corner of Derwin and Lancaster streets with the National Plastics Center & Museum building in the background.

LEOMINSTER -- Police Chief Robert Healey walked through the former National Plastics Center & Museum at 210 Lancaster St., pointing out its features to visitors.

A room set up for his detectives was warm and well lit, as was a training room on the third floor.

The rest of the building was dark and cold to keep utility costs down.

Mayor Dean Mazzarella says it is time to start phase two of plans to move the police headquarters from 29 Church St. to the former museum.

Healey is planning to meet with Mazzarella soon to discuss the next phase and how to move forward.

"As far as I'm concerned we're ready to go on the next phase. We just have to decide what needs to get done and do a budget," Mazzarella said.

An empty room on the first floor of the former museum that is undergoing renovation as the new police station.

Until a full-scale plan and budget is in place, Mazzarella and Healey plan to phase in some more employees to make greater use of the building.

The next group of employees to move will have to be those who do not interact with the public because there isn't a reception desk or even a main entrance yet.

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Mayor, chief will go to next level in revamp of new Leominster Police Station

You may have considered spending this year's tax refund on a home improvement project. So, which projects would be money well spent, and which would not?

Your home is your biggest asset, so it's important to keep it in good shape and make improvements that you can enjoy right away that will increase your home's value.

Angie Hicks, Founder of Angie's List, gives some advice on where to start home remodeling, "If you are considering updating your house this year, consider remodeling the kitchen or the bathroom. Those two rooms get the best return on your investment- about 85 percent. But the key here is not overdoing it, but keeping up with the Jones's. So if you're the only house in the neighborhood without granite countertops then it makes sense to add them, if you're not - skip out on that extra."

Remodeling those rooms can get pricey. If you're on a limited budget, you may want to think outdoors.

Phil Gettum, Gettum Associates, Inc., explains the type of home remodels they have been doing lately, "We are doing a lot more screened porches. Outside decks, pergolas, outdoor living spaces which brings more space into the house, but it's not as expensive, so those tend to kind of fall under that scale as well."

Projects with the lowest return on investment include swimming pools, home offices, sun room, master suite and third bay on your garage.

Regardless of what projects you choose, planning is key.

Angie explains why it is important to plan ahead, "To make sure your remodeling project goes smoothly, the plan is plan, plan, plan and communicate, communicate, communicate. Plan ahead, lay out your budget, have ideas ahead of time, and then communicate with your contractor regularly - that starts with the estimate, documenting in the contract, all the way through the entire project."

Other great remodeling projects that will add to your home's value and have a great return on investments are siding and new windows.

Content: We all think about ways to improve or update our homes, but many of us don't know how to get beyond that wish list stage or can't afford big budget items.

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Angie's List: Home Remodeling

Robin Rombach/Post-Gazette

The living room features Craftsman-style fireplace and a columned room divider. It has original stained mahogany and cherry woodwork and original stained-glass windows. The five-bedroom home is on the market for $149,000.

A longtime landlord who owns buildings in and around New Kensington, Don Ryan is used to people asking him to take a look at houses for sale. Some are in such bad shape that he stops by but doesn't get out of the car. When he does buy one, he rarely asks his wife's opinion.

The house at 258 Freeport Road was different. Peering in through the beveled-glass front door, he saw a beamed living room ceiling and Craftsman-style fireplace with columned room divider. He called his wife, Kim.

"I think you better come look at this," he said.

She did and her thought was the same as his: We're buying this house.

"I guess we fell in love with the beamed ceiling and fireplace in the living room," Mr. Ryan said. "We hadn't even been inside and we decided to buy it."

After a yearlong renovation, they have put the five-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath house (MLS No. 891652) on the market for $149,000 through his mother, Janet Ryan of Century 21 American Heritage Realty (724-994-1311 or ww.century21ahr.com).

It was not a good candidate to flip, Mr. Ryan said, because it needed so much work. It was more of a hobby project for him and his wife, and he knew they would be lucky to recoup the money they put into it. Yet they couldn't resist.

NEW KENSINGTON

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Buying Here: New Kensington

TIPTON, Iowa — Revisions to the original plans for Tipton High School’s auditorium remodeling and wrestling room projects have addressed to overcome objections by school board members and others.

At a work session, school board members learned that if new auditorium seats are 21 inches wide instead of 24 inches, there is room for 608 seats in the auditorium. With 24-inch seats, there would have been a loss of seating from the current 850 to 450.

To retain 608 seats, Al Varney, architect with Ament Design, said the space between rows in the balcony will remain the same but will be increased on the main floor.

To keep the use of one classroom, which was originally to become a stage makeup room, Varney said two 500-square-foot rooms could be constructed by extending the planned addition over the boiler room. He said one could be used for the makeup area and the other for stage equipment storage.  

Another goal of the revisions was to cut the $626,750 cost projected for the wrestling room. Varney explained that can be done by changing from brick and block construction to pre-cast concrete, which would cost $357,520.  Wrestling coach Matt Nerem asked for storage space for exercise bikes and other equipment. He noted that a wooden floor is safer for wrestling than concrete. Recycled rubber flooring as installed in the new weight room was suggested as being less costly than using a double thickness of mats.

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Tipton looks at auditorium project revisions

Feb. 27--Aberdeen Regional Airport' s observation room, a remnant of the days when the airport had a food counter, will disappear as part of a remodeling planned for the airport terminal.

Two areas will be expanded to fill that space. One is the secure holding room -- the area where people wait after making it through security. The other is the baggage claim area.

Airport manager Mike Wilson is excited about the project, which will happen late this summer or early next year.

Currently, the baggage claim area can be very crowded when 50 people arrive on a plane and they're welcomed by about 50 others, Wilson said. Under the planned remodeling, the size of the conveyor belt and the area around it will be greatly increased.

Expansion of the secure holding area is also needed, Wilson said. Right now, the room seats 39 people. The room is extremely cramped when 50 people are waiting to board an aircraft, he said. After the expansion, it will have seating for about 70, so it will still be comfortable if the size of aircraft serving Aberdeen increases in the future.

The cost of the work will be about $400,000, Wilson said. Federal money will pay for about 90 percent. The state will pay for 3 to 5 percent, leaving 5 to 7 percent for the city.

Wilson thinks the renovated terminal will be more convenient and more comfortable. As part of the changes, the curtains at both ends of the current observation room will be removed. Wilson also hopes to paint the entire terminal.

"I think it's going to look much nicer," he said.

Airport space will also be better utilized, he said. The observation room is not used very much and is "not really needed," Wilson said.

In the room now are seven tables, 21 chairs and three vending machines that sell sandwiches, snacks and pop.

The counter area is left over from unsuccessful attempts to run a deli-type operation in the space. All of the restaurant items, except for an ice machine, will be sold, Wilson said.

In doing the construction, the airport will avoid its two busiest seasons -- pheasant hunting and Christmas. If the work can't be done in August and September, it will probably have to wait until January or February.

If the bids for this project come in favorably, Wilson hopes to also expand the terminal building slightly. He'd like to enlarge the area where airline workers deliver baggage to the conveyor. Right now, the area is so tight that those small vehicles are constantly bumping into their surroundings, Wilson said.

Copyright 2012 - American News, Aberdeen, S.D.

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Expansion at Aberdeen airport to begin this summer