How accurate is Zillows rent estimates?

[Jim Nguyen]

I am trying to buy my first rental property to start my portfolio, and currently I am using zillow and red fin to find houses to buy and and rent out. Zillow estimated that the mobile home would rent for $1200 a month, and its mortgage would be $150. That just seems too easy. Anyone have any advice or could point me to better tools to use?

[Jonathan Taylor Smith]

@Jim Nguyen - No, you do not have to get your license... I got mine originally just for the education and access to properties and the MLS, the latter of which you can easily get from any decent Realtor. But over time I found it to be more lucrative and easier than being a Wholesaler. And one month when I had made nearly $20K by just helping friends buy and sell a few houses, I realized - "Wow, if I can make $20K in a month as a Realtor without even really trying, what could I make if I actually went after it!?" - so now I'm a Realtor also to make more money to buy more properties.

I got a good number of my properties off the MLS, but the rest I got through various marketing methods - including a lot of direct mail. That does not require a license, but I love it when I get paid a commission for buying my own property.