For example you can foam fill the box sills (where the house sits on the concrete walls), which is a huge entry point for mice and inspects, plus it greatly improves energy efficiency. 

These could be good cities to invest in, but might not be efficient if you’re not really good at digging up contractors...

This required followup on our part, tenant aggravated, etc. when 1 call to locksmith would have resolved it from the topProperty mgmrs have systems in place to do things systematically, efficiently, etc. 

However you plan to get into real estate, find a way to begin with a model you can scale efficiently.

I have no doubts that there are key pieces of knowledge that I am missing to improve my return and help me become more efficient, but I have to start somewhere. 

Thank you to everyone who contributes their time and energy on Bigger Pockets!

Is there a way to be more efficient when canvassing an area?

Brent,You have to tell us your definition of "financially efficient".

I'm about to enter into an investment deal with an energy company in which I will be entitled to a 15-year income stream.

It makes you dependent on those assessed values being accurate and in my area they can vary widely for similar properties.Assumming the govt is efficient is dangerous.Over many properties, the averages might work out, but the problem is that you are going to try to cherry pick the "best" deals where the values diverge the most.