Four Vermont affordable housing developments will install solar water heating systems, thanks to $500,000 in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Applegate Apartments, Bennington; Highgate Apartments, Barre; Salmon Run, Burlington; and Westgate Apartments, Brattleboro (pictured), will install the systems, which will supply 50 percent of the hot water demands of 1,000 residents.

The announcement was made yesterday by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and the Champlain Housing Trust.

Home prices in Vermont are stabilizing, and will continue to become more stable in 2010. That was the message the National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Lawrence Yun (pictured) delivered when he addressed the Northwestern Vermont Board of Realtors yesterday.

Vermont State Housing Authority (VSHA) has started allowing Vermonters to apply online for the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.

The new system, which went live last week, allows applicants to complete their application in 3-5 minutes at www.waitlistcheck.com. They can return to the site later to track the progress of their application by entering their year of birth and Social Security number.

VHFA Policy & Planning Manager Maura Collins joined host Jane Lindholm on today's "Vermont Edition" on Vermont Public Radio.

You can hear their discussion about the recently released Housing Needs Assessment. Listen online.