America's love affair with sprawling homes is showing signs of waning as the real-estate market softens and aging homeowners seek smaller houses. Our reporter on nervous sellers and the growing supply of 'faux chateaux.'

There's a new breed of real-estate agents who instead of charging a standard commission on the sale of a home, offer a pay-as-you-go plan. Such services may be cheaper for consumers in some cases, but not always.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) declined four points this month, falling to a level of builder sentiment not seen since April 1995. The index 'is not inconsistent with the reasonably orderly cooling-down process we're projecting,' NAHB's chief economist says.