HUNTINGTON -- A mix of traditional and cutting-edge practices is helping to bolster a local bedding company.

Today's home buying trends are set by the overwhelming amount of information that is available to buyers.

In the nearly 30 years that we have made our living as remodeling contractors, we have experienced several economic recessions. And in the home improvement business, that's not such a bad thing.

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. -- Under the shadows of a steel mill's rusting carcass, a new Johnstown is slowly taking shape.

SALT LAKE CITY -- In the Rocky Mountains, the energy crisis has mostly been a crisis for natural gas producers and a boon for consumers.

The Toyota Motor Manufacturing plant has cemented its position as the top automotive employer in the state, and its officials are looking forward to what new or redesigned models Toyota might bring this year. The last several months brought a new product, a 6-speed transmission, at the powertrain plant, which makes engines and transmissions for several Toyota vehicles.

The method used by businesses to decide where to locate a new industrial plant in is often referred to as "a process of elimination."

CATLETTSBURG, Ky. -- Improved reliability and a stellar safety record in 2007 is paying off this year at the Marathon Oil plant in Catlettsburg.

HUNTINGTON -- Scott Boggs loves numbers. He credits that passion with helping him land a job as assistant plant engineer at Steel of West Virginia.

HUNTINGTON -- Champion Industries must be doing something right. The company has set quarterly earnings records for seven of the last nine quarters, starting with the first quarter of 2006. Shortly before that, it faced the devastation of Hurricane Katrina at a plant in New Orleans.

WINFIELD -- From the scenic roads of Putnam County to Interstate 64 entering Nitro, it's hard to miss the giant plumes hovering above some of the cooling towers of American Electric Power's John E. Amos Plant.

Plans are in the works to transform a local crown jewel of golfing into a upscale housing community. It could be the next step in the legacy of the historic Spring Valley Country Club. The facility opened about 80 years ago, but a recent drought and declines in membership forced stockholders to close the course Feb. 29.

NEW YORK -- Sick of vicious headaches from her allergies to household cleaners, Mercia Tappings tossed the chemicals from her Massachusetts home and invested in steam.

ELEANOR -- At Putnam Career and Technical Center, future homebuilders get hands-on skills training complete with the opportunity to building a home.

If you think your rights to fair housing have been violated, help is available. Housing discrimination complaints can be filed by phone or in writing, with HUD and/or with private fair housing enforcement agencies located across the country.

HUNTINGTON -- When it comes to selling a house or making your own house look more inviting, curb appeal is everything.

A second-generation home-builder from Point Pleasant, W.Va., knows how to balance business, family and politics. Sandra J. Dunn serves as the first vice president of the National Association of Home Builders, a 235,000 member organization. She also owns and operates her own business, B.J. Builders, Inc., while remaining involved in politics and staying dedicated to her family.

The electric and the plumbing are ready, the drywall is up and downtown Huntington's second effort to provide new downtown housing, 9th Street Flats in the old Keen Jewelers building, is expected to finish up this spring.

HURRICANE, W.Va. -- Entering her 13th year of providing services to Cabell, Kanawha and Putnam counties, Teays Maids' owner Barbi Davis and her team of professionals have turned the woes of house cleaning into a science.

Read more about Stacey Stalnaker, advertising manager for Mack & Dave's.

HURRICANE -- Some people who've had a new home built say it was the most stressful experience they've ever had. But there are ways to reduce the anxiety and confusion, and Mike Steorts of Steorts Homebuilders says one way is to get a contractor who can help you through the process.

Mendy Fisher had the 3,000-square-foot house in the Cincinnati exburbs, where sprawling housing developments meet farmland. He had the screened-in porch, the four bedrooms, the ponds, the geese, the clubhouse.

NEW YORK -- Real estate may have cooled considerably as an investment, but not real estate television.

HUNTINGTON -- When it comes to progress, your home is a good jumping-off point. While the weather may not yet be conducive for starting large-scale, outdoor projects, there are plenty of smaller jobs that make a big difference, Terry Smith, a manager at Lowe's in Barboursville, said.

MILTON -- Bill Blenko walked into the office, smiled big and immediately felt the warmth and love of the family business.

Somewhere behind the chirp of robins and the budding of dogwoods comes another sure sign of spring -- For Sale signs.

PRICHARD -- Harry Zimmerman Jr. never heard his father talk much, which was a shame. The snippets he did get about Harry Sr.'s life were fascinating.

Valerie Roach's career in real estate got started in 1997, after her sons were grown. "On my street, I had two friends whom I admired that were Realtors at the time, Libby Adkins and Clara Woodrum," Roach said. "They encouraged and helped me with all my questions."

HUNTINGTON -- There truly is "no place like home," yet even today housing discrimination is a pervasive problem nationwide.