Zillow and online county property records for sale prices.   

They should not have been this off and you should always use the worst-case scenario as your target number when you are doing a flip or BRRRR.If I were you and a sale wouldn't net enough, I would do mid-term rental there instead of long-term rental so you can earn more, but still not have a ton of tenancies.

Rochester, NY is a very hot market, there are very few homes for sale.  

I'm quite happy with how the passive portion of my own portfolio is doing.

See, in SFR (1-4 unit) the primary driver to valuations is comp's, market sale comparable, what so-n-so sold there place for last week/month etc.. 

To do with other ppls money, you need that personal relationship with the money source and then they have to trust you in terms of market research, boots on ground, analyzation, contracting, and exit sale. 

I hear ya, I think the fees are negligible but I guess it would be a option not to convert or convert portion. 

You could use the equity from the sale to get back on track financially and reinvest in a more manageable property to kickstart your investing journey.

Are properties such as this more appealing to buyers with renters already on leases or will I get more interest and a higher sales price if I sell the property vacant?  

Texas property tax sales.