Getting market rates (out of state and local)

[Michael Bacile]

Hey guys, I’m back with another burning question.

I’m over a year out from having the funds for my first investment. That’s not stopping me from running numbers though. I know I could contact realtors about this but I’m not sure if it’s worth their time. 

If I’m looking to buy locally or out of state could I just use a site like realtor to get market rates? I look at multis in the buying page then flip over to the rent page and look at going rates, Reno’s, location and sqft of similar properties. That’s how I’ve been getting my numbers to plug in. Or should I start contacting realtors for the next year to get the real numbers?