“Research is what I’m doing when I don’t know what I’m doing.”
~Wernher von Braun, 20th century aerospace engineer and space architect
No matter how many years of investing you have under your belt, we can all benefit from learning more about the great realm of real estate. In this industry, things change. Quickly. To really thrive, you need to embrace becoming a lifelong learner.
Hi Moguls, Matt Andrews here, and today, I want to talk about a specific tool that you can use to further develop your knowledge of the local real estate market: your county property appraiser site.
This type of website is a great way to find comparable properties for a house that you’re looking to purchase – or even to get the scoop on homes in the neighborhoods and communities where you’d like to invest.
First, head over to our good friend Google and type in “property appraiser” and the county where you do business. So, for instance, I would type in “property appraiser Hillsborough, FL.”
The first search result that comes up should be what you’re looking for. In my case, it’s the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser website.
Next, hunt around on the site to find where you can search for property records. The key here is that there should be a search bar.
Your site may give you a few methods for property searches, such as:
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Search by owner name
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Search by address
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Search by folio number
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Search by PIN number
Most of the time, you won’t have any of this information, except for the address. So, go ahead and search by entering the property address.
Once you’ve found the correct property, the site should list several details about that specific house, which may include:
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The name(s) of the owner(s)
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Owner’s mailing address
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Property’s assessed value
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Property’s taxable value (which isn’t always necessarily the same as the assessed value)
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Sales history
You’ll want to take a close look at the sales history section. Here, you can see much more than just the dates when the property was sold. It also includes info on the sales price each time the home changed hands. It’ll look something like this:
Next, the page should display info on the property such as the year it was built, number of bedrooms/bathrooms, structure details and construction materials (i.e. concrete frame, terrazzo flooring, central air, etc.).
You’ll also see tax details (check out how much the annual taxes have varied from year to year).
Digging Deeper Into the Tax Records
Many of these property appraiser websites will have a link to the property’s tax records. In this case, you’ll want to click on the link. These records should show you whether or not the taxes were paid each year. Again, it’ll look similar to this:
The tax record may also show the property’s folio number and PIN number, which you may be interested in having.
Taking it to the Next Level
From there, you can head back to the property appraiser website and do some hunting around to see if you can find additional details.
For instance, you might want to search by owner, to find out who the big buyers are in your area. It can be beneficial to know the real estate “movers and shakers” in your market.
Obviously, if you’re serious about buying the property, you’ll want to do your due diligence by talking to the owner and visiting the house to determine if it’s the right fit for you.
But using a property appraiser site is a helpful first step in this process.
Now you can see…
In this online world, finding detailed information on a property is just a few clicks away. Get clicking.
Getting Started
Let me know in the comments section below: What unique or helpful information did you find on your local property appraiser website? And how did you use that info to your advantage?
». Find your county’s property appraiser website
» Do some detailed research on properties in your area
» Over time, make a list of any owners whose names are popping up
regularly – these might be fellow investors that you may want to
work with in the future
» Check the website often – new details are being added constantly!
Matt Andrews
is a real estate investor, serial entrepreneur, growth hacker, film producer, and #1 bestselling author. He is best known for the Real Estate Investors Guide book series, the Real Estate Freedom Podcast, and founder of Real Estate Freedom. Matt has been seen on CNN.com, Forbes.com, ABC News, and numerous other media outlets. He specializes in trainings Spotlighting cutting edge real estate strategies. Matt and his wife Lindsay travel the world while running their businesses and working as founding board members of 3 charities: Khusi Hona: The Indian Orphan Project, The Rising Heroes Project, and Jamobility: The Jamaican Wheelchair Project.