Electronic security system

A method of operating an electronic real estate lockbox system, the system including an electronic lockbox, an electronic key, and a central computer, the method comprising:

• placing a dwelling key in a lockable compartment inside the lockbox, the dwelling key permitting access to a property listed for sale by a listing real estate agent, the listing agent being affiliated with one of a plurality of local real estate offices, said local real estate office in turn being affiliated with a regional real estate board;
• providing the lockbox with a lockbox identification code;
• providing the electronic key with a key identification code;
• entering a user code on a keypad associated with the key;
• verifying from the user code that the user entering the code is an authorized user of the key;
• relaying data between the electronic key and lockbox;
• unlocking the lockbox compartment to allow access to the dwelling key contained therein in response to the data relayed between the key and lockbox;
• storing transaction data specifying the date and time of the unlocking transaction, together with at least one of either the lockbox identification code or the key identification code, in a memory, said data being in raw numeric form;
• transferring the transaction data from the memory to the central computer, said central computer being located remotely from the local real estate office;
• providing the computer with interpretive data permitting the computer to correlate the key or lockbox identification code to a textual counterpart identifying the key or lockbox, respectively;
• interpreting the transaction data with said interpretive data to produce an interpreted activity report that includes interpreted textual, rather than raw numeric, data;
• establishing a telephone link between the central computer and a remote location;
• and
• transmitting by facsimile the interpreted activity report to the remote location.