Thanks to all the great resources and information found online, researching real estate options today is so much easier than it was just a few short years ago. From anywhere in the world, buyers can research and compare potential communities. For the Greater Boston Area, boston.com has some nice research tools, for example.
When buyers are ready to start looking at specific properties, the local real estate agent serves as a wealth of information which is far more difficult, if not impossible to find online.
I agree, boston.com is a good source. I also like the bigmove section.
http://www.boston.com/realestate/bigmove/
Great introduction to the process, Kathleen. Imagine how much trouble/misunderstanding/angst could be avoided if all brokers took the time to explain such things up front to their prospective clients. Expectation is everything.