Long gone are the days when homeowners were satisfied with a simple deck, a beat-up grill and some basic patio furniture. Now the trend brings living rooms, baths, home spas, full kitchens and even meditation rooms into the great outdoors. Stone fireplaces, built-in grills, water features, multiple levels for patios and decks, hot tubs and even flat-screen TVs - all the luxurious appointments of indoor life are finding their way into outdoor environments.

Want to sell your home fast? Customizing your kitchen, baths or master bedroom is a simple way set your home apart and increase the "wow factor" of those particular rooms.

The powder room - it's one of the smallest rooms in the house, but it's also the room that typically sees the most traffic, especially when you're entertaining guests. So, is your powder room "worthy" of guest traffic?

Natural wood once reigned as the product of choice when it came to selecting an attractive flooring material that would impart a warm, homey and upscale appearance. Today, with many new laminate flooring options available, homeowners are taking a closer look at what appears to be authentic wood, but delivers the beauty at a much lower cost with far more benefits.

Far beyond the bath - that's where creative homeowners and inventive interior designers are taking tile in 2008.

Here are some quick and easy ways to boost the look of your home while stretching your funds to the maximum.

Despite a slumping economy, home improvements remain a popular investment for homeowners. Lisa LaPorta, designer and host of HGTV's "Designed to Sell," offers tips to help homeowners make good design decisions -- whether they're selling, staying or going green.