PALOMINO PASSION: The Grammys, exactly one week...

PALOMINO PASSION: The Grammys, exactly one week late, are coming to the Valley. Well, at least, one Grammy winner is. Lucinda Williams, the songwriter whose bittersweet tune “Passionate Kisses” won song of the year in country music, will perform briefly tonight at the Palomino in North Hollywood. . . . This will be a homecoming for Williams, who hasn’t officially played the club in years.

SILVER LINING: The quake could be the best thing to happen to low-income housing in the Valley. Huh? It’s simple, according to real estate entrepreneur Michael Goodman. He says many buildings abandoned by owners who can’t afford repairs could be rehabilitated and converted to affordable housing. . . . Times staff writer John Johnson interviewed Goodman about how the plan could be implemented. (B5)

TEACHER’S PET: Can you believe the nerve of this creature? Two weeks ago, Jade, above, turns up on the grounds of a school for the developmentally disabled in Shadow Hills. No explanation, no credentials. Just a cute face. . . . The students have been taking care of the lost iguana, since the school can’t find its owner. (B2)

BRAVE BUYERS: Quake or no quake, people are still buying real estate in the Valley. Sales of homes and condos in February, in fact, jumped 16% from the same month last year, though they did drop 20% from January’s pace. Northridge and Granada Hills had the deepest decline. . . . Owners also continue to pay a lot less, and that isn’t likely to change in the near future. See Valley Business, Page 5.

BANKING ON TIME: The units have damage. The tenants have deserted. What’s an apartment owner to do? Worry, that’s what, especially when banks won’t delay mortgage payments. Some owners get time to repair the buildings hit in the quake and some don’t. . . . “You can drive yourself crazy thinking about different possibilities,” one owner said. See Valley Business, Page 3.