There's no question that the Internet has changed the way most people shop for homes. You can find houses online, take a virtual look around and plot their locations in relation to your kids' schools, the church of your choice or even your favorite coffeehouse.

Now the Web is taking it up a notch with software that allows new homebuyers to "build" their dream house. You can pick our your favorite lot, choose from several models and customize the place to your heart's content, all while sitting at your computer.

Then you can print out the final results, take them to the sales office and you're off and running.

Not every builder offers customization portals. In fact, they are far from universal. But enough companies are starting to adopt the concept that it is becoming a trend.

While online simulators like Blu Homes' 3-D Configurator or Kova Solution's WebPro aren't likely to replace honest-to-goodness model homes, at least not altogether, they seem destined to change the way builders operate. After all, research shows that today's buyers, especially the younger ones, want an interactive experience.

Blu Homes, a builder of novel modular homes, is no stranger to innovation. The company ships its products anywhere in the country from its factory in Vallejo, Calif. The modules are 8 feet wide instead of the standard 13, so shipping costs are much cheaper than conventional, wide-load sectionalized houses. The modules are also built on sturdy steel frames and unfold when they arrive to 19 feet, with ceilings as high as 16 feet. Each section comes almost completely finished, including plumbing and electrical systems, and they are assembled by Blu's own construction crews.

But even more inventive is the software the company employs that allows would-be buyers to pick and personalize any of its seven precision-built models. Blu's realistic, three-dimensional configurator is very similar to the software used by such elite industrial giants as Ford and Boeing, according to co-founder Maura McCarthy.

"We are a technology company that builds houses," says McCarthy, who was trained as an economist at Georgetown University and has worked with Alan Greenspan. "Boeing used to build test planes. Now it builds virtual test planes, and we do the same thing with our houses."

With the configurator, you can change finishes, appliances, cabinets, hardware, countertops, window treatments, lighting packages and flooring, all until you find exactly what you are looking for.

Several more traditional "stick" builders are using similar software.

S&A Homes of State College, Pa., uses interactive smartPLAN technology developed by San Francisco-based Graphic Languages. The system allows users to pick a community, pick a house and then make changes, such as adding a fireplace or extending the breakfast room.

The program, which even lets you virtually furnish bedrooms, living rooms and dining rooms, "has been very, very popular; very successful for us," says Ashleigh Shetler, head of marketing for S&A.

Oakwood Homes in Denver, American West Development in Las Vegas and Hayden Homes in the Pacific Northwest are among a handful of builders that use Kova's end-to-end software system. It guides buyers through product and community options, including selecting the site, plotting the house, picking the elevation, making changes and selecting upgrades. It even allows you to pick a color scheme.

"Our homebuyers are fully involved in the customization process," says Kendra Saffle of American West.

Not only does the interface allow you to see floor plans and elevations, but it also tracks which options interfere with others. You might not be able to select a second-floor bonus room, for example, if you've picked a vaulted ceiling for the room below.

"This technology ensures that the options the buyers choose are compatible with the homes they have picked," says Ray Appel, senior IT manager at Oakwood.

And it is completely mobile, available anytime from a smartphone or iPad. That view-it-anywhere flexibility can benefit both buyers and sellers. America West almost lost a deal when a long-distance buyer could not envision the plan he wanted being flipped around, but when he was able to see the reverse plan of the house online, the sale was saved.

Once you've settled on your dream house, you can print out a brochure and take it to the sales office, where an agent has already been assigned to you. Here, your house, just as you picked it, becomes a contract and then a sales order that is the basis for estimating, bidding, purchasing and scheduling, so there is less room for errors along the line.

The program follows the sale all the way through to customer service warranty work after you've moved in.

If there is a drawback with virtual homebuilding, it's that some builders fail to include pricing. Kova says its clients purposefully leave out prices for competitive reasons. But truth be told, they want you in their sales office before they talk about costs.

S&A, the Pennsylvania-based builder, shows base prices only. You'll have to talk to a live person to price any changes. Blu, on the other hand, is completely transparent, showing not just base prices but how the cost changes with each and every item that is moved, selected or deleted.

But buyer beware: Playing around online could be costly. Blu's McCarthy says that buyers are spending $25,000-$50,000 more per house ever since real-time pricing was implemented. Why?

"Because when they control it," she said, "they feel more comfortable with it."

Faced with an unprecedented opportunity to help Americans find the road to financial security through homeownership, policymakers are looking the other way, according to a new report from a New Mexico nonprofit housing agency.

Instead of fostering programs that would help would-be homebuyers take advantage of record-low mortgage rates and rock-bottom housing prices, the report from Homewise says lawmakers and regulators are focusing on policies that "give significant competitive advantages to investors."

"We should be hearing calls for a renewed commitment to homeownership," says Michael Loftin, the report's chief author and executive director of Homewise. "Instead, federal housing policy has left behind its historic commitment to helping the middle class access homeownership in favor of another round of investor speculation."

The white paper from an obscure Santa Fe agency that promotes ownership though financial counseling and educational classes gains credibility here because it puts its money where its mouth is. Because Homewise invests its own capital in the process, it has what is called "skin in the game."

Homewise provides qualified buyers with amortizing second mortgages so they can meet today's tough lender loan-to-value ratio requirements. The second mortgages allow buyers to purchase with smaller down payments. Because the agency stands to lose if the buyer loses, it creates a strong incentive for Homewise to do a good job preparing people for long-term success.

Gambling that house prices would rise forever is arguably at the root of the housing debacle. Gamblers included not only investors who thought they could make a quick buck by buying today and selling tomorrow, but also families who overreached by buying more house than they could afford or opting for risky financing so they could take part in the game.

Now, in an effort to clear the blight that the millions of foreclosed and vacant houses have left upon the land, the government is pursuing programs that will allow investors to swallow swaths of single-family houses in one fell swoop.

The idea, of course, is to get these places occupied and off the books. But turning too many homes into rentals could put a drag on the housing recovery, the Homewise paper warns. And just at that rare moment when millions of working stiffs can finally afford sensible homeownership, author Loftin says public policies now favor what could easily turn into another round of speculation.

Investors realize that today's market presents an exceptional opportunity. Just last month, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported "strong qualified bidder interest" in its pilot program to sell some 2,500 foreclosed homes owned by Fannie Mae in geographically concentrated locations across the country. But in the process, individual buyers, and even organizations like Homewise that are in a position to help families purchase their first homes, are being shoved aside.

"Cruel irony," Loftin says. "The strategy is particularly galling to community advocates who watched subprime lenders reap billions in profits by exploiting vulnerable neighborhoods and are now watching those same neighborhoods again exploited by investors who have a competitive advantage because of federal policies, restrictive lending practices and sheer financial might."

The Homewise white paper notes that the "historic and painful" housing bust has eroded confidence in ownership, to the point where many question whether the average family should buy a home, can buy a home or even would want to buy a home. Even long-standing housing advocates wonder whether ownership is a smart financial choice.

Considering the current market conditions, Loftin says "the better approach" is to pull away from the crowd and consider the implications of ownership as a tool to long-term financial stability. Do that, he argues, and you will see that the historic combination of low house prices and loan rates, combined with the enduring benefits of ownership, have created a unique opening -- "a golden opportunity" -- for middle-class families.

The benefits of owning over renting, beyond satisfying the basic human need of safe and decent housing, have been well-documented but bear repeating.

-- Stable housing costs: Whereas rent is unpredictable, subject to inflation and market fluctuations based on supply and demand, mortgage payments are relatively stable. For owners, the only portions of the house payment subject to change are taxes and insurance. The larger part of the payment, the amount paid to principal and interest, never changes, at least with the traditional fixed-rate mortgage.

-- Wealth building: Because part of each house payment goes toward principal reduction, increasing the owner's net worth each month as the loan is paid down, ownership serves as an automatic savings plan. In contrast, the amount a rental payment adds to the tenant's bottom line is, and always will be, zero.

-- Appreciation: As the house rises in value, so, too, does the owner's stake. Yes, the property can lose value, as we have painfully seen over the last five years. But even modest appreciation has a powerful cumulative effect, and it comes on top of the forced savings noted above.

-- Leverage: This is perhaps the most powerful wealth-building feature of all. Even though the owner pays only a portion of the home's value upfront in the form of a down payment, he benefits from appreciation on the entire asset, amplifying his total return.

"Homeownership is an incredibly powerful engine," the white paper says. "The opportunity for working families to achieve financial security through homeownership is too great to ignore. A national strategy of developing homebuyers and providing them with effective financing would help working families take advantage of today's affordability, and would help communities rebuild from the subprime and foreclosure crisis."

Unfortunately, Loftin doesn't expect federal housing agencies to take the lead in developing a coherent policy or advancing some bold strategy. That's just not realistic, he says. "History has shown us that these agencies are not readily adaptable or fleet of foot, and their current reaction to the problem only confirms this trend."

Instead, he believes the task of developing an effective strategy to support homeownership will once again fall to private nonprofits like Homewise, organizations that have been helping people become owners for years.

"The homeownership community has taken on many daunting challenges over decades without losing sight of our founding missions," Loftin says, "and we should rally again to take on this next challenge."

PHILADELPHIA -- I'm dirty, sweaty and bone-tired. And I'm filled with a level of self-satisfaction that I've rarely achieved with anything else I've done.

I was one of a thousand or so volunteers working under the auspices of Rebuilding Together to restore 30 aging homes last month in the Overbrook section of West Philadelphia, all at no cost to their owners.

Jumping in wherever needed, I hung drywall, painted window frames and ripped out overgrown shrubs. Others helped rebuild porches, replace cabinets and appliances, lay new floors and do whatever else was necessary to turn these circa-1930 houses back into safe, healthy homes.

Volunteers for the three-day revitalization project came from as far away as Florida and Minnesota to pitch in. Conrad Pawlina took vacation time from his job as director of an assisted living facility in Minneapolis to act as a "house captain." He was a second-timer, as was Parker White, the 16-year-old son of a Rebuilding Together executive who spent the beginning of his summer break hauling this and carrying that.

Barry Slaff, a 23-year-old graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, was a rookie. He had a lot of time on his hands while in between programs and said he wanted to spend it volunteering rather than wasting it on video games. He helped me with the drywall and painting.

Working right alongside us, doing whatever they could to help, were many of the homes' low-income residents, who could never afford to do this on their own. They were people like Sarah Hall, who moved into her 62nd Street row house in 1971 and was amazed at all the volunteers who were busily working on her tree-lined street.

"This is a godsend," said Hall, 65, the neighborhood block captain who had to quit her job at Verizon to care for her mother. "My father was a plumber and electrician who took care of my house for me, but now he's gone. So this is a blessing, and you don't get many blessings."

Linda Bates, 54, has lived in her Overbrook home since the third grade and raised her two sons in the same house. Now, it's just her. After a career of taking care of elderly patients, she's on disability herself.

"I've seen this on TV, but I've never seen anything like this in person," she said as volunteers repaired floor joists, replaced her water heater, rebuilt her entire kitchen and treated the house for termites. "This is wonderful."

"A dream come true, a gift from God," is how Andrea Spencer, 45, described it. She works part time for $7 an hour at a supermarket to support herself, her two young boys and her husband, who has been out of work for some time. "We're so incredibly thankful," she said. "All of a sudden, we're not alone. It's a very profound feeling."

No, they're not alone. Rebuilding Together may not be as well-known as Habitat for Humanity. But whereas Habitat for Humanity builds new houses for needy families, Rebuilding Together provides critical repairs to nearly 10,000 homes per year.

Rebuilding Together's 200 affiliates throughout the country work with 200,000 volunteers, including skilled tradespeople and everyday citizens, to mend houses and stabilize neighborhoods.

Professional painter Isaac Harrison oversaw a crew of a dozen or so neophytes here, many of whom had never touched a paintbrush in their lives. He took particular delight in teaching them how to sand, prime and then paint.

Another painter, Ed Hirst, was hired to do the high work too dangerous for untrained volunteers. "I wanted to do it for free," he said, but such a donation was not permitted for liability reasons. "So I charged $4,000 for what was a $9,000 job. And I guarantee it's going to last 60 to 70 years."

Hirst ran a crew of 20 or so La Salle University student volunteers on several houses. Right next door, working on landscaping, was a group of young attorneys and would-be attorneys in the construction practices group of Pepper Hamilton, a downtown Philadelphia law firm.

Then there are the big-name corporate sponsors such as Lowe's Charitable and Educational Foundation, Choice Hotels and Wells Fargo, the and nonprofit supporters such as the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation and Carter's Kids.

Lowe's has donated $7 million worth of building materials since joining with Rebuilding Together in 2007. "We're incredibly passionate about giving back to the community," said James Blair, Lowe's market manager for the Philadelphia area.

The playground built here was the seventh for Carter's Kids, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting fitness and self-esteem among America's youth that was started by Carter Oosterhouse, host of HGTV's "Carter Can" and "Million Dollar Rooms."

Once a year, Rebuilding Together takes on an entire neighborhood. This time, the community-centric project was this transitional neighborhood in Philadelphia. Last year it was Denver, and the year before that it was New Orleans.

Typically, though, local Rebuilding Together branches go house by house and block by block, restoring houses and the lives of the people who live in them one at a time.

"We do this work throughout the city and throughout the year," said Carrie Rathmann, executive director of the Philadelphia affiliate.

Not every house or owner qualifies; there are income and other requirements. But there is always room for volunteers, corporate or otherwise. Like the roofer who just happened by and said he'd be glad to put on a roof a week at no cost if Rebuilding Together would provide the supplies. Or like Lowe's employee Messica McCleary, 24, from Maple Shade, N.J, who helped build the playground and is proud to say, "I made that."

Or Air Force veteran Lonnie Bowen, 66, who rode the trolley an hour each way from his North Philly home to "just come out here to see what I could do."

"I'm living in a veteran's home they remodeled three years ago," says Bowen, who served two tours in Vietnam. "When people do something for you, you try to do something for others."