|
Consumer Information
Advocacy
Texas Department of Family and Protective Services
Hotlines for reporting abuse, information on child-care licensing, adult protective services, and more.
Automotive/Vehicles
Autotropolis
Includes pricing information, a new-vehicle selector guide, interactive forums, updated blogs, and car-buying advice.
Edmund's Automobile Buyer's Guides
Fuel Economy Site
Compare gas mileage on different vehicles, learn gas mileage tips and more, on this site provided by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety - Vehicle Ratings
Kelley Blue Book
New-car pricing, used-car values, reviews & ratings, advice, financing & insurance.
NADA Appraisal Guides - Cars, Boats, RVs, Motorcycles, Personal Watercraft...
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Vehicle recalls, defects, complaints, traffic safety, laws/regulations, and much more.
Texas Driver's Handbook
Products & Reviews
Consumer Search
Contains many reviews and reports on products and equipment for the home/house, the Internet, health & fitness, electronics, office, sports & leisure, automotive and more.
Consumer World
Many links to consumer resources, from buying advice to filing a consumer complaint.
Household Products Database
Search household products by brand, ingredients, or Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) in order to research chemical ingredients and health effects to over 4,000 consumer brands.
iSafetyNet
Provides a directory of services related to health and safety for the general public. Site includes: events in the news, health risk calculator, resource databases, links library, assistance profiles, link management, consumer information, school performance, prescription drugs, recalls, and parenting. Also includes informational sites for the aging, children, teens, women, men, African-Americans, Asian-Pacific-Americans, Hispanics, and Native American Indians.
Texas Electric Choice - Power to Choose
Information for Texas electricity consumers on choosing an electricity provider.
U.S. Treasury Auctions Page
Provides links to government auction items.
Protection & Safety
Better Business Bureau
FoodSafety.gov
Information on food-safety warnings and outbreaks of food-borne disease from the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services. The site also links to government updates on food and nutrition issues, including press releases, fact sheets, White House statements, Congressional testimony and more.
Consumer Protection
Link to a broad range of consumer information from numerous federal agencies.
Consumer Protection - Texas Attorney General
Information on the Consumer Protection Hotline, how to file a consumer compliant with the Attorney General, and how dispute resolution works. Or, follow links to the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and online consumer-protection brochures covering topics such as disaster relief, giving to charities, identity theft, medical fraud, and more.
DisasterPrepped.com
Emergency-preparedness tools and disaster solutions, for families, organizations, and companies.
Federal Citizen Information Center
Current Consumer Information Catalog from Pueblo, Colorado. Includes the latest product recalls and scams, consumer news, and notes from various Federal agencies.
Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network
This is the website for an organization whose mission is to raise public awareness, to provide advocacy and education, and to advance research on behalf of all those affected by food allergies and anaphylaxis. The site includes food-allergy news, and sends email alerts about mislabeled or recalled food or pharmaceutical products, as well as notifications of ingredient changes from responsible food companies.
FTC: Federal Trade Commission
Information about the "Do Not Call" registry along with advice on avoiding scams and rip-offs, consumer information, and business information from the Federal Trade Commission.
Identity Theft - FTC: Federal Trade Commission
Tips and suggestions to minimize identity theft and a list of steps to take in case of fraud. Also offers instructions on how to be removed from telemarketing, mail, and E-mail lists from Direct Marketing Association. This site is maintained by the Federal Trade Commission.
OnGuard Online
Provides practical tips to help consumers secure their computers, protect personal information, and guard against Internet fraud.
Recalls.gov
Provides links to products that have been recalled or deemed unsafe, hazardous or defective by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, national Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Coast Guard, Food and Drug Administration, Food Safety and Inspection Service, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Real Estate
Harris County Appraisal District
Houston Association of Realtors
Search for a home in the Houston area online.
HUD: Homes and Communities
National Association of Realtors
Search for a home in select cities across the United States.
Sperling's Best Places
Compare cities in terms of housing, cost of living, crime, education, economy, health and climate, or find your best place to live using Sperling's preference survey.
Texas County Data Information
Choose a county and search for property values by address, owner, account number, or property ID. County Appraiser contact information is also provided for each county. (Does not include Harris County. See link above.)
Texas Low Income Housing Information Service
Provides information on locating affordable and low-income housing in Texas and how to apply for assistance programs. This site also contains reports on the history of public housing in Texas; rent costs in Texas cities, and housing needs.
[Top of page]
|
