You need to find a more efficient and repeatable way to do it 97% of the time.  

They also looked into replacing washing machines with energy efficient models to reduce usage. 

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".