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Reports on the trend of housing loan mortgages in the U.S. as of April 1, 2004. Increase in the dollar threshold for jumbo mortgages in recent years; Interest rates carried on such mortgages; Difference in policies regarding housing loans above $333,700.

Looks into the certainty of finding the perfect home improvement contractor in the U.S. Successful completion of projects with a minimum of pain and a maximum of satisfaction; Careful attention to the contract; Multibillion-dollar amount spent by homeowners on remodeling in 2003.

Reports on the stability of the home loan market in the U.S. Average interest rates; Refinancing outlook; Growing interest in adjustable rate mortgages.

Discusses the reverse mortgages scheme for housing in the U.S. Estimate of loans available for people aged 62; Requirement for reverse mortgages; Option of the borrower on how to receive their loan.

Reports that Pfizer Inc. has purchased a building in New York City. Plan of Pfizer for the purchased building; Ways in which Pfizer has saved money from the design, renovation and construction of one of its building; List of buildings owned by Pfizer in New York City.

Reports on the renovations being applied to the auditorium for the Society for Ethical Culture's building in New York's City. Enlargement of seating capacity; Complete rebuilding of the red oak stage; Reasons for the renovation; Sources of funding.

Focuses on the construction of a 14-story building with 104 condominium apartments at 505 Greenwich Street in the western portion of Hudson Square in New York. Sales that started in January 2004; Number of units that have been sold; Development of the building by Metropolitan Housing Partners with Apollo Real Estate; Design of the building by Handel Architects.

Reports on the construction of a glass and concrete building at the northeast corner of 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City. Features of the building; Property and investment company developing the building; Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates PC as the architectural firm designing the building.

Reports on the renovation of the Duane Library at Fordham University, Bronx, New York City. Schedule for the opening of the renovated library; New Uses for the library; Biggest challenge in the restoration of the building.

Focuses on the construction of a 12-story building in New York city that will house both the Stephen Gaynor School, which teaches children with learning disabilities, and dance studios for the Ballet Hispanico. Location; Cost and financing; Exterior; Background on the Ballet Hispanico; Features of the Gaynor School, which will occupy the lower seven floors; Space; Architects.

Presents Web sites designed to help homeowners avoid dishonest and unsatisfactory contractors in home improvement advice in New York City. Availability of the advice in home centers and large hardware stores; City Web site offering information on contractors; Way of confirming that contractors are licensed in the Web site for Suffolk County

Reports on the first building to win New York City's Landmarks Preservation Commission approval since the establishment of the Gansevoort Market Historic District. Design of the building by Morris Adjmi; Plan to rent the building to commercial tenants; Site of the historic district.

Reports on the renovation of the building occupied by the New School University in New York City. Cost of the project; Employment of several architectural firms; Donation made by Henry Arnhold, co-chairman of Arnhold & S. Bleichroeder.

Reports on the increasing real property rates at Harlem in New York City. Result of rising demand for housing; Enhancement of the value of land following approval of rezoning; Lots purchased by nonprofit organizations.

Offers information on the construction of the Aston rental building in Chelsea, New York City. Schedule of completion; Location of the tower; Name of the developer.

Highlights the addition of six floors for storage space to the Center for Jewish History in New York City. Renovations designed by Manhattan architectural firm of Beyer Blinder Belle; Use of similar materials and proportional relationships to create a unified appearance of four buildings; Historic district challenges.

Reports on the rising closing costs in real estate sales in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Costs that used to be fixed which are now based on the price of the property; Total closing cost fees to both buyer and seller which can reach as high as 7 percent of the sale price; List of fees due at closing; Complications that can arise.

Features the office building, the Hutchinson Metro Center in Bronx, New York City.

Reports that construction is underway as of June 2003, on 13 single-family three-bedroom row houses on 150th Street between Tinton and Union Avenues in the South Bronx of New York City, sponsored by Habitat for Humanity. Description of what the houses will look like; How the residents will have to put 600 hours of "sweat equity" into the building of the houses; What their interest-free loan will then entail; Donations from various organizations.

Reports that a U-shaped condominium that will enclose landscaped gardens and offer three styles of apartments is nearing completion on a West Village block in New York City. Description of the project and its plans and costs; Projected design of the town houses and costs of living there.

Describes a condominium erected in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Completion date; Planned residential capacity and apartment types; Opposition to its construction because it does not require its residents to registered artists-in-residence; Location.

Reports on the amount saved by New York City's Empire State Building in air-conditioning costs by switching between steam and electricity to supply chilled water throughout the building's air-conditioning system.

States that applications for mortgage refinancings are at record levels in April 2003 because of low interest rates that lure homeowners into lower-cost loans. Views of economists at the Federal Home Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac) and Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) about the trend in the United States; Data from the Freddie Mac weekly surveys; People who have moved out of their apartment or refinanced new loans; Discussion of housing demand; Example of loan terms.

Discusses the renovation of a building to be used for the non-profit organization Association to Benefit Children in East Harlem, New York City. Funding for the renovation; Use of the building; Features of the building.

Discusses the construction of a nine-story condominium building at 91st street and Madison Avenue in New York City. Description of the building and the condos; Approval of the plan by the Landmarks Preservation Commission; Development of the property by Cary Tamarkin and the architectural firm Platt Byard Dovell White.

Discusses the efforts of the Community Preservation Corporation in Manhattan, New York City with regard to the addition and preservation of housing units. How a vacant lot in Brooklyn was developed into a building with retail space at a ground level; Architecture of Carmi Bee of RKT&B; Fire safety function of balconies at 384 Atlantic Avenue.

Discusses how there is a divide between the owners of the corporations on Church Street and the planners of the World Trade Center site in New York City. Efforts of three institutions on Church Street to convince the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation to consider buildings which are of a reasonable height; Need for green space across from St. Paul's. INSET: Section 11.

Discusses how growth in home value and reduction in mortgage rates put more than $274 billion into the economy of the United States in 2001 and 2002. Topic of how Americans are refinancing their homes and using home equity; Examples of data from refinanced homes and second mortgages; Topics of tax liens, low credit scores, loans, and debt repayment.

Discusses the space for arts groups at 520 Eighth Avenue, New York City.

Announces the construction of a glass and steel office building on the north side of Houston Street in New York City. Project that is being developed by Macklowe Properties; Project that will be financed through North Fork Bank; Explanation of the design; Details of the building.

Reports on borrowers opting for adjustable rate loans rather than mortgage rates. Adjustable-rate loans that are initially lower than those on fixed-rate loans for a specified period, but fluctuate over time; Borrowers who opt for adjustable-rate mortgages who plan to sell their homes before it is time to adjust the rates; Home prices in the New York metropolitan area that have risen, resulting in buyers who can afford the payment under the initial rate of an ARM, but not the higher payment of the fixed-rate mortgage.

Reports the status of the construction of an apartment building by the Richman Group and the Gotham Organization in New York City as of November 29, 2002.

Describes the Splashlight Studios building constructed in West 35th Street, New York City designed to offer rental photographic and digital studios for the fashion and magazine industries.

Reports on the occupancy of luxury hotels by fewer business travelers in the U.S. as of October 13, 2002.

Discusses the popularity of the performing arts programs at Bard College, a private liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. How Frank Gehry designed a performing arts center for the campus; Cost of the project; Inclusion of two theaters in the building.

Reports on the renovation of the Freeman Simpson Plaza in the South Bronx neighborhood of New York City by Magnusson Architecture and Planning. Number of apartments which will be available; Rental prices; Features of the building.

Reports on housing and selling prices in the New York City area as of September 2002. Rise in the median selling price of existing single-family homes in New York State, New Jersey, and Connecticut; Data from surveys by brokerages, such as Insignia Douglas Elliman, on luxury houses, condominiums, and co-operatives in Manhattan; Idea that there is competition because of high demand and low inventory; Topics of bidding wars and displaced residents; Outlook for residential real estate prices.

Discusses the increase in cruise liners that include Alaska as their port of call.

Focuses on the tenants of the Fordham Associates building in the Bronx, New York City.

Reports on the decision of two cruise lines owned by Carnival Corp. in the U.S. to cancel their scheduled calls at Saint Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, as of July 2002.

Focuses on operations at small co-operative apartment buildings in New York City. Relative size of smaller co-ops; Costs of operation; Benefits of living in a small co-op building; Relations between co-op board members.

Presents information on the residential real estate seminar organized by Neighbors Helping Neighbors in Brooklyn, New York City for potential homeowners.

Reports on the opening of the Hyatt Regency Jersey City on the south pier of the Harborside Financial Center office complex in New Jersey.

Focuses on a decrease in the conversions of rental units into co-ops and condominiums in New York City. Reasons for this decrease, including market forces and changes in this real estate market; Developers which are actively converting rental units into condominiums, including Property Markets Group; Benefits of purchasing one's rental unit.

Deals with the lack of impact of federal law on water pollution for cruise lines in the U.S..