DotHomes (www.DotHomes.com) — Offers short descriptions of properties to buy or rent, then links users to agent sites. Includes heat maps of local prices and video uploads from sellers.
HotPads (www.HotPads.com) — Offers an easy-to-use, map-based search for rentals and properties for sale. Includes a buy vs. rent feature that helps you decide which option makes [...]
AreaConnect (www.AreaConnect.com/crime) – Users can compare crime statistics for more than 8,000 cities.
Claritis (www.claritas.com) – Type in a zip code and get demographic data common to that area. Free.
Environmental Protection Agency (www.EPA.gov) – Users can click on the ‘where you live’ tab to learn about levels of air and water pollution, hazardous waste sites and [...]
Education.com (www.Education.com) – Contains more than 4,000 articles written by well-known education sources; also a Web magazine and a discussion board community that allows members to ask questions of like-minded parents and onsite experts. Check out the new SchoolFinder feature.
Great Schools, Inc. (www.GreatSchools.net) – The oldest of the three sites, Great Schools is packed with [...]
Angie’s List (www.AngiesList.com) – Founded in 1995, Angie’sList boasts more than 600,000 members in 124 cities. Subscribers pay a $10 sign-up charge and a small monthly fee to receive reports from other homeowners on a variety of contractors — from painters to plumbers — whose services are outlined in detail and assigned an overall letter [...]
Home surveillance isn’t just for the gadget maven or rich recluse anymore. A new breed of Web-enabled home alarms — and webcams — can now be activated and monitored from the office, from the car, even from around the world. And believe it or not, the new systems usually require 70 percent less of an [...]