Ft Lauderdale Lifestyle Blog

By Paul Owers South Florida Sun-Sentinel Posted April 30 2007 Broward County real estate agent Marisa DiLenge will schedule an open house to showcase a property, but only if the seller insists. "If they get cranky, OK, I'll do one," DiLenge said, adding that the staged event usually attracts more neighborhood gawkers than serious buyers. "I just don't think they're effective." Some of her peers across South Florida still preach the importance of an open house but concede the once popular weekend ritual has lost ground to the Internet as a way to corral potential buyers. Many people are used to searching for properties while sitting at their computer keyboards, but the recent growth in online videos and virtual home tours has ramped up real estate marketing on the Web during a housing downturn that has dragged into a second year. "There's no denying the power of the Internet," said Jeff Levine, of Illustrated Properties in Wellington. Open houses became popular in the 1970s, when it was common for families to drive through neighborhoods after church Sunday mornings. Cookies and punch kept the kids occupied long enough for the parents to tour the homes, ask questions and consider making offers. Read Entire Story, click here

3rd Annual Fort Lauderdale Super Boat Grand Prix
Friday, May 4th - Sunday May 6th
Location: Las Olas Boulevard at A1A / Fort Lauderdale Beach
This event will be run as part of the McDonalds Air & Sea Show
Full details at www.superboat.com

More homeowners extend their living space to the backyard

It's one of her favorite rooms in the house, where Katherine Whiteside often cooks and entertains. Half inside and half outside, the gardening writer's outdoor room is outfitted with appliances and her cherished barbecue. Patio heaters in the arts-and-crafts style complement her circa-1920 home, while an L-shaped couch provides seating for guests. The room may be expected in warm-weather states, where outdoor living is commonly a year-round experience. Whiteside's house, however, is located in upstate New York. See full story.

This week's Real Estate stories

By MarketWatch
Last Update: 2:35 PM ET Apr 20, 2007

Much has been said about the trend of cocooning, the tendency for homeowners to spend more time at home. The trend has homebodies across the country enhancing their living spaces -- and not only the ones under the main roof.

Outdoor rooms are gaining in popularity as places to cook, entertain and relax. And these rooms aren't only for temperate climates. Warming elements allow rooms to be used three and four seasons out of the year in colder parts of the country.

According to 2005 research from the Propane Education & Research Council, 35% of homeowners had a finished outdoor room and 34% planned to design and purchase one by the following spring. Last year was a big year for sales of grills, one of the centerpieces of an outdoor room: More than 17 million grills were shipped in 2006, a 15% increase compared with 2005. There were more grills shipped in 2006 than any year since 1985.

Read more about the trend of outdoor living in this week's real estate pages. Also read about the increasing popularity of sustainable landscaping and see if your city made the top 10 list of most popular places to live in Relocate-America.com's annual survey.

If you're one of the lucky ones with a nicely furnished outdoor room - and if the weekend forecast for your area looks as good as Chicago's does -- make sure you don't stay glued to your computer for too long. Unless you're a laptop user, that is.