The movers and shakers of the movie-making industry have checked off most of the red-carpet events this awards' season: Critics' Choice Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards and Golden Globes. Next up? The granddaddy of 'em all: The Academy Awards.

TODAY Money expert and msnbc.com senior writer John Schoen joined us for a live web chat Wednesday to talk about the housing market.

Though the pace of home sales picked up last month as the economy and job market improved, home prices have yet to show any meaningful turnaround.

The movers and shakers of the movie-making industry have checked off most of the red-carpet events this awards' season: Critics' Choice Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards and Golden Globes. Next up? The granddaddy of 'em all: The Academy Awards.

Sales of previously owned homes surged in January to the fastest pace since May 2010 in another sign that the housing market is slowly making some headway against its longest dip since the Great Depression.