1. Doing Your Own Research 2. Internet Searches 3. Service Companies 4. Access to MLS

DOING YOUR OWN RESEARCH Within this category, there are four subcategories. Those are:

 Courthouse Searches  Newspaper Listings  Tax Appraisal Districts  Master Neighborhood Courthouse Searches If you live in a state that is discloses property sales information, you will have a much easier time than those of us who live in a non-disclosure state, like Texas. My understanding for disclosure states is that information on sales can be found at courthouse if you're willing to spend necessary time. From that information you could devise your own methodology for determining comps. Certainly, it would be beneficial to know history of a target property which you can look up while you're there, but I think this would be very slow and probably not worth your efforts if only goal is to get comparable sales data.

Newspaper Listings In some states sales information is listed in local newspapers so you could get a feel that way or create your own database and update it periodically. Again, I think this is a slow way to get things done, but it may prove useful to you in some circumstances.

Tax Appraisal Districts In my area, tax assessed values provided by tax appraisal districts are frequently useless. You'll have to get a feel for this in your area as you may find that assessed values are close in many neighborhoods.

Master Neighborhood Probably most accurate way is to spend necessary time to master your farm areas. By this I mean learning values for certain neighborhoods that you target. You can speak with Realtors, attend open houses, view as many floorplans as possible, etc. until you can drive by a house at 30 mph and know within a reasonable range what property will be worth in good condition. This information comes in extremely handy when talking to sellers on phone. If a seller calls you and tells you house is in ABC subdivision, it's a three bedroom, two bath, two car garage house and it's 1,500 square feet, it's nice to immediately know market value in your head.

INTERNET SEARCHES

I know some investors use online searches to determine value. I tried this when I first started and found information to be outdated and not even close to what I consider a comp. For example, at time Austin, Texas market was appreciating almost one percent per month. Retrieving sales numbers that were almost a year old and five miles away from my target property was useless. If you're in a disclosure state, this methodology may prove more helpful. I haven't used or even looked at any of these sites for this purpose in years, but here's an initial list you could view, although keep in mind that some of these may be regional-specific. www.Realtor.com www.Homeradar.com www.Homegain.com www.Yahoo.com www.Domania.com

I'm sure you can find many more sites like these if you'll spend time to do so. SERVICE COMPANIES

Some investors subscribe to services that provide sales information. This can be in form of software in form of CD's that are sent out periodically or it could be an online service where you login to retrieve information. I've never used any of these services and typically, reviews are mixed as to their usefulness. Again, that may come down to whether or not your state discloses sales information. Here's a list for you to check out:

First American Real Estate Solutions (www.firstamres.com) Dataquick (www.dataquick.com) Netronline (www.netronline.com) CD-Data (California only - www.cd-data.com)

ACCESS TO MLS

Having access to Realtor's proprietary information that is available in Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is invaluable. In my opinion you should begin working toward this goal regardless of which comp methodology you plan to use or currently use. Again, there are several ways to accomplish this goal:  Ask or Hire Someone to Help  Become a Realtor  Obtain an Associate Membership  Relationship Access

In honor of National Procrastination Week (the first week in March) and March Forth Day (on March 4th, of course), each year I dedicate my March article to subject of procrastination. Why? Because this single habit is root of so many of problems that plague all of us at one time or another – challenges with managing our time, relationships, projects, and information.

What is procrastination? Procrastination is doing low-priority tasks and activities instead of high-priority ones which so often contribute most to our success. For some, procrastination becomes a harmful habit which impedes personal and professional development.

So if procrastination is harmful, why do we do it? We tend to put off doing things for following reasons: * They are unpleasant to do. * They are difficult or complex to do. * They involve making tough decisions that can be overwhelming.

When we don't want to do something that is unpleasant or difficult, we find less important things to do that will keep us "busy" so we have an excuse for why we didn't get around to it. But putting something off does not make it go away, and postponing it often just makes it worse. As someone once said, "Killing time murders opportunities."

WARNING SIGNS OF PROCRASTINATION

"You will never find time for anything. You must make it." -Charles Buxton

Finding tasks on your to-do list week after week is a clear sign you are procrastinating, but there are also some more subtle, overlooked signs of procrastination. Can you identify with any of these possibilities?

* Feeling overwhelmed: No matter how hard you work, you cannot seem to catch up. You have a backlog of work that seems insurmountable. It may be affecting your sleep, as you lay in bed thinking about all things you "gotta do." Perhaps it's time to renegotiate some of your commitments and say no to more requests so you can say yes to what's most important to you.

* Breaking commitments to others or to yourself: You're constantly having to make excuses about why you didn't do something you said you'd do.

* Losing focus: Although you have many important tasks at hand (some are even urgent), you find yourself wasting time doing things that are not important. For example, you find yourself surfing Net instead of doing something much more important.

* Starting something new before finishing something else: This is particularly common with entrepreneurs who often spend time developing new leads rather than following up with prospects they already have. If you are spending more time attending networking events than you spend following up by phone, in writing, or face-to- face, this may be you.

SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PROCRASTINATORS

"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." --Stephen Covey

Here are 7 tips to help you change from "I'll do it when I get around to it." to "I'll do it now!"

1. Recognize and admit that you are procrastinating. As long as you defend, deny, or rationalize your procrastination, you are not in a position to overcome it. Stop rationalizing and you'll be more likely to take action.

2. What motivates you to do better? What rewards -- tangible and intangible – will you get by doing it rather than putting it off? Remind yourself of that payoff on a daily basis. Post a picture or note that represents those rewards to you on such places as your computer screen, bulletin board, or dashboard.

One way to check motivation is to check your self-talk. Do you frequently say, "I gotta…," "I should…," or "I have to…"? Replace this self-talk with "I choose to…" and recognize that you are at choice about what you do. If you don't choose to do it, don't do it!

3. Analyze what causes you to put things off. Most of us tend to avoid things that are unpleasant, complex, or overwhelming.