Since adding wired cameras to the security system of his Woodbury home, Rich Ritholtz can have neighbors pick up packages for him when he’s away. He can also see what his teenage children are up to. “My wife and I were in Europe this summer and I could see what’s going on when we’re not there,” said Ritholtz, 52. You can see the deliveries, who comes and goes, the people who are supposed to be there — it keeps your kids in check.” A home security system is just one of an ever-growing number of...

For years, Handy Lane was a sleepy little Amagansett street with modest homes that dead ended into a densely wooded, 2.11-acre area. That all changed with the East Hampton Planning Board’s 2015 approval of Salty Development’s plans, paving the way for an eight-parcel Handy Lane Development subdivision with homes starting at 3,847 square feet and going up to 7,081 square feet on parcels ranging from 0.29 to 0.83 acres...

When Pat McIntyre wants her mail, she drives to the picture-perfect, stamp-size New Suffolk Post Office to pick it up. That’s because there’s no mail delivery for the 403 residents of the 316 homes in this 0.72-square-mile hamlet tucked into a bend of the Peconic River on the North Fork. “Everybody likes that: That’s where you meet everybody,” says McIntyre, 75, a retired IBM system integration partner. In 1986, McIntyre took part in the annual American Youth Hostels bicycle ride from Manhattan...

A circa-1838 home once owned by renowned Abstract Expressionist artist Nicolas Carone is on the market for the asking price of $1.745 million. Located on Three Mile Harbor-Hog Creek Road in Springs and across from Three Mile Harbor, the one-acre property includes a 1,400-square-foot three-bedroom, three-and-a-half bathroom cottage and an accessory structure, which Carone used as a studio. Though the home has had several...

If you want to save some money and the planet, too, you’ll want to consider greening your home. By taking some simple steps, you can clear your conscience by using sustainable materials while also making your abode more energy-efficient. Lori Miller, president of Farmingdale-based LGC Interior Design, promotes green elements in her design work, offering practical tips on choosing environmentally friendly furnishings...

After looking at 40 houses, Michelle and Jack Gladstone took one glance at the line stretched around the block at the open house for the brick Cape in Lindenhurst and instantly understood what they were up against. “We knew the way the market is, we’re going to have to be aggressive to buy, if it’s something we really wanted,” says Jack Gladstone, 61, a school bus driver. The inventory of homes for sale nationwide hasn’t just declined, it has shrunk radically, as unusually low mortgage rates...

In most years, architect Carolina Bassal rehabilitates between five and 10 zombie homes on Long Island — structures abandoned by owners who have fallen behind on mortgage payments, and others that have become unlivable because of fires, storms, illness or death. With the pandemic, that number is down to one over the past six months. A lot of these houses, a legacy of superstorm Sandy in the fall of 2012, have been neglected for years, and some for decades, says Bassal, who owns Great Neck-base...

Spring is here! With COVID-19 not quite in the rearview mirror, you’ll be spending lots of time at home and a spruced-up landscape will work wonders to rejuvenate your spirit. As we once again begin to welcome friends and family into our homes, a relaxed yet safely distanced al fresco setting is the perfect place for entertaining. This spring you’ll want to maximize your space, which can best be achieved outdoors, where you can...

Brendan Reynolds summered for a decade on Fire Island before giving in to his love for the sea. He moved into Lonelyville, an idyllic beach community on the western end. "It was very nice not to have to lock your doors and be able to sleep with windows open and hear the ocean," says Reynolds, 46, about his decision to settle on the Island 25 years ago. Byron Chenault and his family, too, went from spending summers on Fire Island to moving into their Ocean Beach vacation home four years ago...

"The beauty of Elwood is it doesn’t really change,” says Maria Rielly, an agent with Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty of Huntington who has lived 52 years in the hamlet. “Though there used to be more farms, change comes slow. Even with the changes, it still has a hometown feel." Elwood earned the title “The heart of Huntington” because “it’s more or less in the middle of town,” says Robert Hughes, Huntington town historian. “What’s nice about it is that although there are...

Party central at Evan and Kristen Castellan’s Selden home is a former working shed that’s the size of a one-car garage. Seven years ago, Evan, 34, an HVAC service technician, and Kristen, 35, a paralegal, bought the home she grew up in from her parents. The couple fixed up the shed three years later. “It was a work shed,” says Evan. “We pretty much redid it to include a working bar and hangout area.” And now, each summer, the Castellans host a blowout they call "Shedfest." Whether it's...

The cedar playhouse in Susan Lopez’s Glen Cove backyard has gotten pretty fancy — ever since, that is, the 35-year-old stay-at-home mother painted the door red, added rainbows to the floor, ladder and ceiling, and covered everything with glitter. The playhouse, which she purchased from Walmart, will eventually be airbrushed with her children’s names — Skyla, 5, Savannah, 2, Lucas, 1 — as well as some of their favorite things, including Mickey and Minnie Mouse, cars, unicorns and, of course...

Any child would love a special space of their own to play, explore, imagine or simply be themselves. Here are four amazing spaces where kids’ (and parents’) fantasies are turned into reality... Just to the right of their Valley Stream home’s entry is the Harrison family’s playroom — with its treehouse, rainbow and tree murals, pegboards for artwork (dubbed “Harrison Fine Art Gallery"), bean bag chairs, cushions, crafts table, TV and shelves...

Many think of their homes as a refuge from an otherwise harried existence, a sanctuary of peace and quiet. For some Long Islanders who live near train tracks, major roadways and airports, that is simply not the case. "If I had to do it again, I wouldn’t buy [the house], with the noise," says Regina Ruscillo, 73, an auto glass business owner who has lived in a Franklin Square home with her husband next to the Southern State Parkway since 1970. The couple purchased the house in wintertime...

Choosing the right rental can be a challenge. For all the happy renters, experts say, there are others who have endured hassles, hardships and headaches. Here are eight red flags to watch for before signing an agreement. Before you're actually living in an apartment, you can gauge how attentive a landlord is likely to be. If he or she is hard to reach right from the start, that could be a sign of what you'll encounter if you run into problems after you've moved in. If you're working with a real...

For the past six years, Jackie Sanchez has opened her Roosevelt split-level to photographers and video crews to shoot fashion spreads for, among others, Vogue Australia, Allure, Elle UK, Nike and Playboy. Besides the money and fame (of sorts), Sanchez, 53, a model and makeup artist, says she enjoys seeing her home, which is full of Haitian art and antiques, in print and video. “I just feel like I’m hosting a party,” she says, adding that meeting Mary J. Blige during production for a music...