There’s something empowering about hitting the supermarket to shop for your week’s meals. Rather than putting yourself at the mercy of the local Chinese take-out restaurant or succumbing to the lure of the drive-through, you’re taking dinner—and your waistline—into your own hands. “Eating out less and cooking more may be one of the most effective things you can do to keep fat and calories in check,” says Cheryl Forberg, R.D., author of Stop the Clock! Cooking. “Plus, building your diet around produce, whole grains, beans, and lean protein practically guarantees you’ll reach your recommended targets for most vitamins and minerals.” But while we may be tossing the freshest, most wholesome foods into our carts, many of us are storing and preparing them in ways that rob them (and our bodies) of the very nutrients we’re seeking. Nutritionists and food-safety experts point to nine typical kitchen blunders that negatively impact the quality of our diets. Fortunately, you can sidestep all of them easily. Follow this advice to make your next meal healthier.

MISTAKE #1

You’re overloading on produce
Sure, making one big grocery run at the start of the week seems like a no-fail way to get your five a day. After all, if those carrots, greens, apples, and berries are around, you’ll eat more of them and therefore get more nutrients, right? Wrong. “The vitamins and minerals in fruits and vegetables begin to diminish the moment they’re harvested,” says Geri Brewster, R.D., a wellness consultant at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mt. Kisco, New York. That means the longer you store produce, the fewer nutrients it will contain. After about a week in the fridge, for example, spinach retains just half of its folate and around 60 percent of its lutein (an antioxidant associated with healthy eyes), concludes a study in the Journal of Food Science. Broccoli loses about 62 percent of its flavonoids (antioxidant compounds that help ward off cancer and heart disease) within 10 days, according to a study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. “You’re better off buying smaller batches at least twice a week,” says Brewster. If you can’t shop every few days, pick up frozen produce. These fruits and veggies are harvested at their peak and are flash-frozen immediately. Because the produce isn’t exposed to oxygen, the nutrients stay stable for a year, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis. Just be sure to avoid frozen products packed in sauces or syrups. These additions can mean extra calories from fat or sugar, and sometimes they’re high in sodium as well.

MISTAKE #2

You’re stashing foods in see-through containers
If you’re still buying your milk in clear plastic jugs, consider switching to cardboard cartons. Milk is rich in the B vitamin riboflavin; when exposed to light, a chemical reaction is kicked off that reduces the vitamin’s potency, according to researchers from Ghent University in Belgium. Other nutrients, such as amino acids (the building blocks of protein) and vitamins A, C, D, and E, are also affected. And because lowfat and nonfat milk varieties are thinner than whole milk, light can penetrate them more easily. “This process, known as photo-oxidation, can change the flavor of the milk and create disease-causing free radicals,” says Susan Duncan, Ph.D., a food scientist at Virginia Tech. Since grain products (especially whole grains) are also high in riboflavin, they too are susceptible to this breakdown of nutrients and production of free radicals. Duncan recommends avoiding the practice of storing dry goods like pasta, rice, and cereals in clear containers on your countertop. Instead, keep them in their original boxes or in opaque containers and stash them in your kitchen cabinets, where they’ll be shielded from light.

MISTAKE #3

You’re too quick to cook your garlic
Legend has it that these pungent little bulbs can ward off vampires, but science shows that if you cook them correctly, they may have the power to fight off an even more frightening villain: cancer. “Chop, slice, or crush your cloves, then set them aside for at least 10 minutes before sautéing,” says John Milner, Ph.D., chief of the nutritional science research group at the National Cancer Institute in Rockville, Maryland. “Breaking up garlic triggers an enzymatic reaction that releases a healthy compound called allyl sulfur; waiting to cook garlic allows enough time for the full amount of the compound to form.”

MISTAKE #4

The only time you eat avocados is in guacamole
Adding this green fruit to salads and sandwiches is an easy way to raise your nutritional bar. Avocados are exceptionally rich in folate, potassium, vitamin E, and fiber. It’s true that they’re also high in fat, but it’s the heart-healthy monounsaturated kind. And half an avocado has just 153 calories. One novel way to work them into your diet is to use them as a fat substitute in baking. Many of us have been using applesauce or puréed prunes in place of butter and oil in brownie and cookie recipes for years. Researchers at Hunter College in New York City wanted to see if avocado could work in the same way without affecting the taste. They replaced half of the butter in an oatmeal cookie recipe with puréed avocado. Not only did this swap cut the total fat count by 35 percent (avocados have fewer fat grams per tablespoon than butter or oil), it also made the resulting treats softer, chewier, and less likely to crumble than cookies made according to the original recipe. If you’re still wary of using such a nontraditional ingredient in sweets, try adding it to savory baked items, such as quick breads and muffins.

MISTAKE #5

You skimp on seasonings
Herbs and spices not only enhance the flavor of your cooking without adding fat or sodium, many of these fragrant ingredients also protect you from food poisoning. After testing 20 common seasonings against five strains of bacteria (including E. coli, staphylococcus, and salmonella), researchers at the University of Hong Kong found that the higher the antioxidant value of the spice, the greater its ability to inhibit bacterial activity. Cloves, cinnamon sticks, and oregano were the most effective at fighting off these food-borne pathogens. A separate study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry shows that rosemary, thyme, nutmeg, and bay leaves are also antioxidant-rich. Of course, you can’t ignore standard food safety practices, but adding half a teaspoon of herbs or spices to salads, vegetables, and meats can give you extra peace of mind and boost your intake of disease-fighting antioxidants.

MISTAKE #6

You’re a serial peeler
Most of the antioxidants and polyphenols in produce are located very close to the surface of the skin or in the skin itself. A study published in the journal Nutrition Research found that most fruit peels exhibited two to 27 times more antioxidant activity than the pulp of the fruit. “Many of us remove the skins from eggplant, bell peppers, peaches, apples, and nectarines while preparing recipes, but we’re really just tossing away nutrients and fiber,” says nutritionist Forberg. She recommends gently scrubbing potatoes and carrots rather than removing their skin, and using a vegetable peeler or sharp knife to pare away as thin a layer as possible from fruits and veggies that must be peeled.

MISTAKE #7

You’re simmering away vitamins and minerals
Boiling may seem like a simple, no-fuss way to prepare vegetables without adding oil, but this cooking method can cause up to 90 percent of a food’s nutrients to leech out, says Karen Collins, R.D., a nutrition advisor to the American Institute for Cancer Research in Washington, D.C.

“Minerals like potassium and water-soluble vitamins like B and C end up getting tossed out with the water,” she says. To keep these essentials from draining away during the cooking process, try steaming (use a minimal amount of water with a steamer basket), microwaving, or stir-frying. A study from the University of Essex in England showed that when certain vegetables were prepared using these techniques, most of the nutrients they contained were spared. And stir-frying scores even more points when you’re cooking dark green or orange vegetables. These are rich in beta-carotene, and the oil you use in stir-frying them can increase the amount of the anti-antioxidant you absorb by up to 63 percent, according to a study published in the journal Molecular Nutrition & Food Research. You don’t need to use a lot of oil; even just a tablespoon will do.

MISTAKE #8

You don’t wash all your produce before eating it
Most of us remember to rinse plums and berries before noshing on them, but when was the last time you doused a banana, orange, cantaloupe, or mango with water? It may seem strange to wash peel-and-eat produce, but harmful bacteria lingering on the surface could be transferred to your hands or even to the inside of the fruit when you cut into it. To clean produce, simply run each piece under the tap and gently scrub. “Using your hands to rub fruits like oranges, bananas, and peaches under water is sufficient,” says Ruth Frechman, R.D., a dietitian in Burbank, California, and a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. When you’re done, dry the items with a clean cloth or paper towel. It’s important to wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds before and after you handle the items to further reduce the spread of bacteria. Frechman also suggests throwing out the outer leaves of greens like cabbage and lettuce before washing, as they’ve been handled the most and can have the highest levels of bacterial contamination.

MISTAKE #9

You’re not pairing foods properly
Many of us think about getting enough iron only when we feel lethargic or fatigued. But we should pay attention to our iron intake every day, before symptoms occur. Our bodies absorb about 15 to 35 percent of heme iron (found in meats and seafood), but just 2 to 20 percent of non-heme iron (from beans, whole-grain cereal, tofu, and dark, leafy greens). We can maximize how much iron we take in by pairing the latter group with vitamin C–rich foods and beverages, such as citrus fruits and juices, tomatoes, hot and sweet peppers, strawberries, and melons. On the other hand, drinking tea or coffee at meals can inhibit how much iron we absorb by up to 60 percent, says Marla Reicks, R.D., a professor of nutrition at the University of Minnesota in St. Paul. That’s because these beverages contain compounds called polyphenols that bind to the iron. Wait until you’ve completely finished your meal before putting the kettle on to boil.

Amanda Pressner

Houston, we don't have a housing problem.

The city's $152,500 median home sale price is up 6.6% from 2005. It boasts a low vacancy rate and an oil-rich economy. Throw in a bubbling entrepreneurial tech scene, and you've got four factors that put Houston on the top of our list of best places to buy a home.

San Francisco, Charlotte, N.C., Jacksonville, Fla., and St. Louis, Mo., are other areas buyers can feel safe investing in.

We examined the country's 40 largest metropolitan areas and looked at cities where home prices have appreciated over the last two years. We also measured tightening vacancy rates. These metrics indicate places where buyers are investing in homes in order to live, not just make a quick buck, and where the housing market is relatively solid. We culled our vacancy and home price information from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Association of Realtors.

The average vacancy rate across the major metro areas was 2.88%, and the average percent appreciation was just .07% over the last two years.

With lending tight, we also factored in the spread between a monthly rent check and a mortgage payment at the median level (assuming that the down payment was 10% and the fixed interest rate is 6.25%). Encino, Calif.-based real estate brokerage firm Marcus & Millichap provided stats on median monthly rents.

Cities where a mortgage payment was close to, or less than, the average rent were given a higher score. For instance, in Cleveland the average rent is $702, and the average mortgage is $565.78. With a lower monthly payment, tax incentives and the opportunity to build equity, it makes sense to buy here.

In stark contrast, San Jose, Calif., has an average monthly mortgage payment of $4,322.33, versus an average rent of $1,612.

Lots To Like In The Lone-Star State

Texas dominated our lineup of mortgage-worthy areas. Thanks to a business-friendly tax environment, many large corporations call the Lone Star State home, which creates jobs and tax revenue.

The University of Texas campus provides young blood and research-related jobs to No. 2 city Austin. This state capitol is a hip area on the rise. The vacancy rate has fallen by 37.5% in the last 24 months to just 1.5%, despite a lot of building in recent years. And buying isn't much more expensive than renting. An average mortgage payment is $1,022.40, and average rent hits $767.

San Antonio, No. 5, and Dallas, No. 6, made the list thanks to affordable housing, which continues to appreciate.

In both cities, the median home price hovers around $150,000, and a monthly mortgage payment of around $800 is pretty close to what one pays in rent. If you can pony up the down payment, these are great areas to live.

Coast-to-Coast Sweet Spots

Philadelphia landed at No. 4, with homes appreciating by 9.1% in the last two years and vacancy rates staying low at 1.9%. This university town, which plays host to the University of Pennsylvania, certainly has its charm. A city on the rise with a tempting cost of living, Philly is a great place to buy a new home.

The South made a nice showing with Charlotte, N.C., Jacksonville, Fla., and Atlanta, Ga., making our list. Charlotte and Jacksonville have surged in price by 12.9% and 8%, respectively. Atlanta has seen huge amounts of growth and remains reasonable with a median home price of $172,000.

San Francisco, this year's best city for young professionals, came in at a respectable No. 8. While housing certainly isn't cheap in the City by the Bay, it is definitely in demand and continues to appreciate. For a buyer, San Francisco offers a culturally rich and beautiful city that is chock full of opportunity.

10. Atlanta, Ga.

A city that constantly tops our lists of best places for just about anything, Atlanta is a great place to buy a home. With median properties in the $170,000 neighborhood, this booming city is affordable and packed with things to do. Ranked No. 6 on the 2008 Best Places For Business list, Atlanta has jobs and a competitive cost of living. This means taking out a mortgage is a safe long-term decision.

9. Jacksonville, Fla.

Since 2000, Jacksonville's population has grown an impressive 8%. Meanwhile, median home prices have climbed 14% in the last 24 months to $189,200. Along with its other virtues, sunshine-rich Jacksonville came in at No. 3 on our 2008 Cleanest Cities list thanks to fresh air and clean water.

8. San Francisco, Calif.

The City by the Bay may be pricey, but it's one of a kind. If high culture, good food and great architectural bones are to your taste--this is the town for you. If a median home price of $805,000--up $52,800 from 2005--and cold, damp weather all year long aren't, you might try somewhere else. This city is rich in history, human capital and fun. That's part of why it topped our 2008 list of Best Cities For Young Urban Professionals.

7. Charlotte, N.C.

Don't be fooled by the sweet Southern accent; Charlotte is the second-largest banking capital in the U.S., behind New York City. With the University of North Carolina nearby and tons of cultural attractions, this is a city that won't get tired. The market is reflecting what residents already know: Median home prices hopped to $205,400 in 2007, from $180,900 in 2005. Charlotte's vacancy rate is just a bit above the national average at 3.1%, reflecting a lot of space that is likely to get snapped up.

6. Dallas, Texas

Shiny skyscrapers and charming suburbs make Dallas a tempting place to sign mortgage papers. With appreciating median home prices in the $150,000 territory, just about anyone can get in. And with just 2.5% of homes vacant, it appears they are. While the city has a reputation for cowboy boots and big trucks, Dallas is a sophisticated metropolis that rivals any major U.S. city in terms of culture and cuisine.

5. San Antonio, Texas

This Latin-flavored American city is growing fast thanks to bustling businesses and a low cost of living. Having major corporations like IBM certainly helps attract residents who bring brains and tax revenue to the city. With a median home price of $150,900, up from $133,900 in 2005, it's an affordable place relative to the rest of the country. Home to professional basketball's Spurs, this town is packed--just 2.4% vacancy--and full of Texas pride.

4. Philadelphia, Pa.

The City of Brotherly Love has a tight housing market--just 1.9% vacancy--reflecting the lure of a charming and historic American city. Steeped in tradition, this city is priced well, with a median home price of $234,900, up from $215,000 in 2005. With abundant cultural outlets, including universities, museums and theaters, Philly is a great place to call home.

3. St. Louis, Mo.

St. Louis is a great place to settle because it's not overbuilt and is reasonably priced relative to income. Thanks to the attractive cost of living, many large corporations--including brewing behemoth Anheuser-Busch and financial heavies Stifel Nicolaus and Edward Jones--call St. Louis home. With a family friendly culture, and a steadily appreciating median home price of $145,400, the "Gateway to the West" is a great place to buy a home.

2. Austin, Texas

Here, a whopping 98.5% of homes are filled, and that small sliver of vacancy is thinning. Home prices, meanwhile, have surged from $163,800 in 2005, to $183,700 in 2007.

A trendy art and music scene--the city plays host to music festivals South by Southwest and Austin City Limits--makes it an affordable place to live for any culture vulture.

1. Houston, Texas

Houston, we don't have a problem. Well known as an energy industry hub, this growing metro area recently made Forbes.com's Top 10 Up-And-Coming Tech Cities thanks to the Houston Technology Center and bubbling entrepreneurial tech scene. With home prices on the rise by 6.6% and vacant homes disappearing by 11.3% in the last two years, this is one area where buyers can feel safe jumping in.

Maurna Desmond

A little over two years ago, when Donald Trump listed Maison de L'Amitié in Palm Beach, Fla., for $125 million, it was a sign of the times.

Real estate prices were on the rise, and even though it was $50 million more than the next-highest listing, there was a sense that Trump would get his price. After all, everyone else in America was getting his.

Once again, Maison de L'Amitié points to the state of the housing market. In March, Trump knocked $25 million off the price, the biggest discount ever for a single residence not related to bankruptcy proceedings.

But that hasn't pulled other sellers off the $100 million-plus ledge. At the top of our list this year is a $165 million Beverly Hills, Calif., mansion once owned by William Randolph Hearst; a Jacobean manor on 40 acres in Greenwich, Conn., and a Los Angeles château, commended by former French President Jacques Chirac for its architecture, both priced at $125 million; and perhaps the finest property in Nevada's Lake Tahoe on 210 acres of land with its own private cove. Price tag: $100 million.

The ultramodern Portobello estate in Corona del Mar, Calif., which has a listing price of $75 million and was, in 2006, the second-most expensive home in the country, rounds out the list. Even though it has eight bedrooms and 30,000 square feet of interior space, not to mention its own private beach, it barely made this year's elite group.

To compile our list, we spoke with brokers and consulted listing agents and real estate appraisers and scoured real estate listings. Most of the homes on this year's list are newcomers that have entered the market with high eight-figure or $100 million-plus prices. Estates like Three Ponds in Bridgehampton, N.Y., the Pierre Penthouse in Manhattan and the Portobello--which in previous years seemed excessive at $70 million to $75 million--are now second tier when it comes to price.

Our list did not include land properties. The $115 million Bell Ranch in San Miguel County, N.M., boasts an impressive 10,832-square-foot, eight-bedroom main house, and its own airstrip. But at 250,000 acres, it offers buyers mostly land. That, and 3,200 Red Bell cows and a horse herd.

We also didn't include private listings, also called pocket listings, because they're quietly shopped around among elite buyers. One rumored example: Prince Bandar bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia's $135 million Hala Ranch in Aspen, Colo. It had been on the market for two years but is no longer publicly listed.

Measuring the Market

While sellers nationwide are suffering, the highest segment of the luxury market, in trophy property corners like Palm Beach, Fla., Beverly Hills, Calif., or the east end of New York's Long Island, has performed well. Setting the tone for this year: a $60 Southampton, N.Y., buy to an unknown buyer. And there's John Thornton, a former Goldman Sachs partner and chairman of the Brookings Institution, who last month bought a $81.5 million Palm Beach spread.

"Inventory is relatively tight for trophy-type properties," says Jonathan Miller, president of Miller Samuel, a Manhattan real estate appraisal firm. "It's a contrarian element to some of the slip-off in sales, because the bulk of the market is down largely due to a weaker economy."

A recent survey of wealthy Americans, or those with more than $1.35 million a year in discretionary income, done by American Express Publishing and Harrison Group, found that high-end home buyers feel this year is a great one to buy property.

One reason has to do with financial market conditions. The Dow Jones industrial average is down 5% this year, and the Standard & Poor's 500 has dropped 10%. Real estate in prime locations allows buyers to hedge against the risks of a sagging market and a sinking dollar by putting their money into a less volatile asset, similar to the reasons that people invest in gold. The highest end of the luxury market, above $20 million, has not softened like the general market.

"Over the long haul, quality real estate has never been a loser," says Jim Taylor, vice chairman of the Harrison Group, a marketing and strategic research firm in Waterbury, Conn. "If you've paid in cash, you're balancing your portfolio against market risk. They're not printing any more land, even if they are printing more money."

Miller says that the upper end of the Manhattan market, or homes $8 million and up, has seen its inventory contract by 35% over the last year. "If we were having this conversation six to nine months ago, we'd say it was Wall Street bonuses," he says, "but the weak dollar has certainly played a role."

In addition, sellers like Trump, with his $25 million price reduction, are increasingly flexible.

"The resistance has lessened,” says Nelson Gonzalez, a broker at Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell in Miami Beach. “Smarter sellers are dropping their prices, and buyers are coming up a little bit more to make deals."

He says in an elite enclave of the Venetian Islands, in Miami Beach, where one will often find sales of $20 million and up, there have been more sales in the first quarter this year than all of last year combined. In 2007, there were 13 total waterfront sales. Through the first quarter this year, 12 waterfront properties have closed or are in contract.

Whether that pickup in high-end activity means this will be the year of the $100 million sale is anyone's guess. We've been waiting two and a half years.

Matt Woolsey

While visiting New York in 2005, Nita Ambani was in the spa at the Mandarin Oriental New York, overlooking Central Park. The contemporary Asian interiors struck her just so, and prompted her to inquire about the designer.

Nita Ambani was no ordinary tourist. She is married to Mukesh Ambani, head of Mumbai-based petrochemical giant Reliance Industries, and the fifth richest man in the world. (Lakshmi Mittal, ranked fourth, is an Indian citizen, but a resident of the U.K.)

Forbes estimated Ambani's net worth at $43 billion in March. Reliance Industries was founded by Mukesh's father, Dhirubhai Ambani, in 1966, and is India's most valuable firm by market capitalization. The couple, who have three children, currently live in a 22-story Mumbai tower that the family has spent years remodeling to meet its needs.

Like many families with the means to do so, the Ambanis wanted to build a custom home. They consulted with architecture firms Perkins + Will and Hirsch Bedner Associates, the designers behind the Mandarin Oriental, based in Dallas and Los Angeles, respectively. Plans were then drawn up for what will be the world's largest and most expensive home: a 27-story skyscraper in downtown Mumbai with a cost nearing $2 billion, says Thomas Johnson, director of marketing at Hirsch Bedner Associates. The architects and designers are creating as they go, altering floor plans, design elements and concepts as the building is constructed.

The only remotely comparable high-rise property currently on the market is the $70 million triplex penthouse at the Pierre Hotel in New York, designed to resemble a French chateau, and climbing 525 feet in the air. When the Ambani residence is finished in January, completing a four-year process, it will be 550 feet high with 400,000 square feet of interior space.

The home will cost more than a hotel or high-rise of similar size because of its custom measurements and fittings: A hotel or condominium has a common layout, replicated on every floor, and uses the same materials throughout the building (such as door handles, floors, lamps and window treatments).

The Ambani home, called Antilla, differs in that no two floors are alike in either plans or materials used. At the request of Nita Ambani, say the designers, if a metal, wood or crystal is part of the ninth-floor design, it shouldn't be used on the eleventh floor, for example. The idea is to blend styles and architectural elements so spaces give the feel of consistency, but without repetition.

Antilla's shape is based on Vaastu, an Indian tradition much like Feng Shui that is said to move energy beneficially through the building by strategically placing materials, rooms and objects.

Pricey Pad

Atop six stories of parking lots, Antilla's living quarters begin at a lobby with nine elevators, as well as several storage rooms and lounges. Down dual stairways with silver-covered railings is a large ballroom with 80% of its ceiling covered in crystal chandeliers. It features a retractable showcase for pieces of art, a mount of LCD monitors and embedded speakers, as well as stages for entertainment. The hall opens to an indoor/outdoor bar, green rooms, powder rooms and allows access to a nearby "entourage room" for security guards and assistants to relax.

Ambani plans to occasionally use the residence for corporate entertainment, and the family wants the look and feel of the home's interior to be distinctly Indian; 85% of the materials and labor will come from outside the U.S., most of it from India.

Where possible, the designers say, whether it's for the silver railings, crystal chandeliers, woven area rugs or steel support beams, the Ambanis are using Indian companies, contractors, craftsmen and materials firms. Elements of Indian culture juxtapose newer designs. For example, the sinks in a lounge extending off the entertainment level, which features a movie theater and wine room, are shaped like ginkgo leaves (native to India) with the stem extending to the faucet to guide the water into the basin.

On the health level, local plants decorate the outdoor patio near the swimming pool and yoga studio. The floor also features an ice room where residents and guests can escape the Mumbai heat to a small, cooled chamber dusted by man-made snow flurries.

For more temperate days, the family will enjoy a four-story open garden. In profile, the rebar-enforced beams form a "W" shape that supports the upper two-thirds of the building while creating an open-air atrium of gardens, flowers and lawns. Gardens, whether hanging hydroponic plants, or fixed trees, are a critical part of the building's exterior adornment but also serve a purpose: The plants act as an energy-saving device by absorbing sunlight, thus deflecting it from the living spaces and making it easier to keep the interior cool in summer and warm in winter. An internal core space on the garden level contains entertaining rooms and balconies that clear the tree line and offer views of downtown Mumbai.

The top floors of entertaining space, where Ambani plans to host business guests (or just relax) offer panoramic views of the Arabian Sea.

Lobby

Nine elevators dot the lobby floor: Two are designated for parking areas, three for guest quarters, two for the Ambani family residences and two for service. The lobby opens to numerous lounges, reception areas and powder rooms. Dual stairways lead from the lobby floor down to the ballroom, which is designed in an open layout with a two-story roof.

Ballroom

The most striking features of the Antilla ballroom are the crystal chandeliers that will take up approximately 80% of the ceiling. The silver stairways lead to a central landing, behind which two retractable doors can open to display works of art. There is also a stage for entertainment or speeches, with a projection screen behind it. A kitchen, about the same size as the ballroom itself, can service hundreds of guests.

Bathroom

One of Antilla's key design themes is the mix of lavish features seen in worldwide homes and elements that are distinctly Indian. The Gingko-leaf sink designs are a good example. Native to India, the leaves in the sinks are shaped in such a way that their stems guide water into the bowl created by the basket of the leaf.

Traditional Lounge

Ambani's home features countless lounges, offering Reliance Industries guests a quiet escape. Chandeliers and mirrors are a common feature of these rooms, as are finely woven Indian area rugs.

Modern Lounge

Each space and floor uses materials not seen anywhere else. The idea is that spaces will blend into one another, giving the impression of consistency and flow, while at the same time displaying different influences and traditions. This furniture, floors, lines and dark woods of this lounge have a more minimalistic approach than the home's other lounges.

Entertainment Level

It's very common in large homes to have a theater or screening room, but usually they're just large projection screens with a few nice seats. The Ambani's theater is more like those seen in George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch or Frank Pritt's Portabello Estate--a full-fledged theater, indistinguishable from a cinema. A wine room, snack bar and entertaining space, including couches and tables, fill out the room.

Health Level

The indoor/outdoor health level features a lap pool and Jacuzzi that take in views of the city skyline, as well as lounge chairs shaded by trees. Yoga and dance studios, changing rooms for men and women, gyms and a solarium with a juice bar fill out the interior space. There are plans to include an ice room in the center space, where the Ambanis could sit on a hot Mumbai day to cool off in a man-made snow flurry.

Garage

The first six floors of the residence will be dedicated to parking for the Ambani family, guests and employees. Hanging vertical gardens dot the exterior. While they make for good decoration, their key function has to do with energy efficiency: The hydroponic plants, grown in liquid nutrient solutions instead of soil, lower the energy footprint of the home by absorbing heat and sunlight and providing shade that helps keep it cool.

Roof

The top floor features a covered, outdoor entertaining space with panoramic views of the Mumbai skyline as well as the Arabian Sea. On those days when it's too hot, or cold, an interior space with floor-to-ceiling windows provides the same luxury.

Matt Woolsey

• In Pictures: Inside the World's First Billion-Dollar Home
• In Pictures: Homes of the Billionaires
  In Pictures: World's Most Expensive Homes 2007

In some housing markets, homes aren't only retaining value -- they're gaining

Challenging real estate markets can be found across the U.S. as home prices decline, sales fall and foreclosures rise. But in some places the biggest challenge has been convincing would-be buyers and sellers that local conditions don't resemble the national trends.

It's a challenge that Randy Jeffers, chairman of the Texas Association of Realtors, faces all the time.

While the number of sales has fallen somewhat, he still regards his market of Amarillo, Texas, as a seller's market right now. The median price of an existing single-family home in Amarillo was up an annualized 11% in the fourth quarter, according to the National Association of Realtors.

"Often they're surprised about what is going on locally or statewide," he said of his clients. As the country's collective housing ills land bold headlines, locals incorrectly extrapolate the information to their own markets, Jeffers added.

The housing problems largely aren't national but regional in nature, said Susan Wachter, a real estate professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

"The interesting thing is that there are parts of the country where housing prices are doing fine, thank you," she said. In fact, only five states are in what she would consider a housing recession: California, Arizona, Nevada, Florida and Michigan.

In the fourth quarter of 2007, 73 out of 150 metropolitan areas showed an increase in the median existing single-family home price compared with the same quarter in 2006, according to statistics from the national Realtors group.

That isn't to say these markets are immune from some national trends.

For one, stricter lending standards put in place in the wake of poor mortgage performance in many parts of the country are affecting people regardless of where they live. Requirements of larger down payments and higher credit scores are keeping some people from buying homes, especially first-time buyers, and are often driving down the volume of sales.

If the job picture weakens as a result of a slowing economy, that could also affect some of the most stable markets.

Recently, however, the places where homes seem to be holding the most value are those where prices didn't surge during the boom years and where economies are staying strong. In large cities, it's often the areas that are located closest to the city's core.

Places the boom forgot

Single-digit appreciation may have looked meager in the years of the boom, when red-hot markets experienced bidding wars and high investor interest. Now, as some markets experience steep price drops, those rates aren't looking so bad after all.

Areas in upstate New York, Texas, some Rocky Mountain states and the Carolinas are faring better than the rest of the country in terms of price appreciation these days, said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors.

In general, there weren't caravans of speculators in these areas driving up prices. Plus -- unlike some trouble spots in the Midwest such as Detroit -- many of the local economies in these markets remained stable.

Utah -- where home prices rose 9.27% in the fourth quarter of 2007 compared with the fourth quarter of 2006 -- was the state with the highest appreciation rate, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. Utah was followed by Wyoming, where prices rose 8.27% over the year, North Dakota, where prices rose 7.87%, and Montana, where prices rose 6.90%.

Still, in Billings, Mont., buyers often say they're waiting for prices to come down, said Dan Wagner, president of the Montana State Association of Realtors. But because they never soared during the boom years, prices likely aren't in need of a correction, he said.

Where the jobs are

The strong employment picture in Seattle caused home prices there to rise after other major cities reached their peaks. Appreciation there in the fourth quarter was just over 1%, according to NAR, but it is believed that the city's employment landscape is keeping Seattle housing from losing value.

A similar situation is shaping up in other markets.

Home-prices in major cities fell 10.7% in January compared with January 2007, according to the Case-Shiller home price index. The index tracks 20 cities, and 19 of them saw year-over-year declines. But one market experienced modest home-price gains over the year: Charlotte, N.C., another market that never saw a huge run-up in prices during the boom.

An influx of banking and research jobs in the Carolinas -- especially in Charlotte and the Research Triangle -- has been important to its stability, said Marty Frame, general manager of Cyberhomes.com. About 15,000 jobs were created in the Charlotte area last year, said Dot Munson, president of the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. Large employers in the area include US Airways, Bank of America and Wachovia.

The jobs are luring people to the city, she said, and one of the biggest challenges transplants have is getting their former homes sold if they're coming from a market that is sluggish.

"They have to rent for a while or do something creative for a place to live," Munson said.

Job growth has also been strong in Texas, where the oil and gas industries are big employers. In March, the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area experienced the fastest year-over-year rate of job growth among the nation's major metropolitan areas, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Second place went to the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington market.

Texas ranked eighth in OFHEO's list of states with the highest year-over-year appreciation during the fourth quarter of last year, preceded by Alaska, Washington and New Mexico.

Close to the core

In metropolitan areas, including San Francisco, Washington and New York, homes are typically retaining more of their value the closer they are to the city's core, Wachter said. In fact, declining home values in an area's suburbs are tending to drag down the average for the rest of the metropolitan area, she said.

Manhattan, however, tends to be a real-estate juggernaut all its own.

The average price of a Manhattan apartment was up 47% in the first quarter, compared with the first quarter of 2007, according to Brown Harris Stevens, a provider of real-estate services in the area. The boost was largely due to an increase in high-end sales that occurred at two luxury condo developments.

But the median price of a Manhattan apartment, which is less impacted by high-end activity, also rose 13% over the year, according to the firm.

One driver of the market: A rising demand for three- and four-bedroom units in Manhattan, said Jim Gricar, executive vice president of Brown Harris Stevens. More families are opting to live in the city as opposed to seeking larger homes in the suburbs, as was common in the 1980s and early 1990s, he said.

"After years of the city reinventing itself... (Manhattan is) attracting families and keeping people who might have moved to Scarsdale," he said.

Amy Hoak

Eco-Friendly Gardening Is Easy With a Few Simple Steps

Keeping your garden "green" is harder than it might sound.

There's the pesticide. The emissions from your mower. The invasive plants that drink up all your water.

So while getting back to nature may feel like a bonding experience with Mother Earth, that doesn't mean you're doing her any favors.

For the most part, creating an eco-friendly garden involves returning to the Earth as much as or more than what you've been taking out of it. Water, for instance. Soil nutrients. And it can be done on the cheap.

Here's how to get started improving your own little piece of the universe:

ENRICH THE SOIL

Opt for minimum tillage when you garden, which doesn't tear up healthy root systems. It also prevents erosion and saves unnecessary springtime spadework.

THINK ORGANIC

Renew tired topsoil with decomposed kitchen scraps, shredded leaves and rotting bark. That doesn't mean eliminating chemical fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides — but the garden-friendly insects and cash you save by going natural will greatly add up.

Layer mineral- and microbe-rich mulches and compost over vegetable gardens and flowerbeds at the start of each growing season. That helps the ground retain water while at the same time smothers invasive weeds.

GO NATIVE

Choose self-reliant plants well suited to the area, which will boost survivability.

Rotate vegetable crops on at least a four-year production cycle. That will discourage crop-specific bugs from returning on their destructive feeding rounds.

SAVE WATER

Use soaker hoses rather than less efficient sprinklers. Add rain gardens around the yard to eliminate runoff. Place rain barrels under eave spouts and use the stored water for irrigation.

Replace thirsty lawns and fast-fading flowerbeds with such heat- and drought-tolerant plant varieties as succulents. If you do intend to continue with turf, then buy grass seed blends tending toward fescues and ryes rather than the more moisture- and fertilizer-demanding bluegrasses.

REDUCE EMISSIONS

Go retro by exchanging that noisy, smoke-belching power mower for a mechanical push mower. Shred leaves, turning them into compost rather than herding them with a gas-driven blower into piles destined for the local landfill.

RECYCLE

Put Mother Nature to work. Use biodegradable pots for seedlings and then stick both into the ground, easing transplant stress.

GO PAPERLESS

Order garden supplies via the Internet rather than from catalogs, saving production and material costs. (Look to CatalogChoice.org, a free service telling merchants which, if any, of their print catalogs you want to receive.)

GET PRACTICAL

Plant trees alongside your house for use as windbreaks in winter and for cooling shade in summer. That saves on heating and air conditioning costs, respectively, and provides cover for many species of watchable wildlife.

Then go yard art one better by installing some utilitarian ornaments — a pair of clothesline poles, for example. There's no greater symbol of being at one with nature than seeing some just-washed bed sheets billowing in the breeze.

DEAN FOSDICK