Welcome! This guide explains every feature in plain language. Refer back any time — click the ? button in the header.
The Dashboard at a Glance
Each row is a property whose owner is showing motivation signals — things pulled from public records that suggest they might want to sell. The score is your quick read on how strong the signals are.
- Hot (≥70): Multiple stacking flags. Call/letter these first.
- Warm (50-69): Solid signal. Worth a mailer.
- Active (30-49): Single flag. Bulk mail or backburner.
Lead Type Flags Explained
- Tax Deed County is selling the property to recover unpaid taxes. Owner is days/weeks from losing it.
- Lands Available Property already failed at tax deed auction. County now sells it directly. Often available for pennies on the dollar.
- Tax Cert Someone bought a tax certificate against the property. Owner has 2 years to pay or lose it.
- Probate Owner died, estate is in court. Heirs often want to sell the inherited property fast.
- Lis Pendens A lawsuit (often foreclosure) is pending against the property.
- Code Violation Property has unfixed code violations from the county. Owner is overwhelmed or absent.
Daily Workflow (recommended)
- Open dashboard → click Hot (≥70) in left sidebar
- For each lead, click the row to see details
- Click Comp to value the property (links to free public sources)
- Click Calculator to figure your max offer
- Click Skip Trace to find owner contact info (links to free sites)
- Export to CSV → upload to your CRM (JustJarvis/GHL) → start outreach
Comp Tool — Manual Steps
The Comp button gives you one-click access to free data sources. Here's the manual workflow for each:
- Volusia Property Appraiser — Search the parcel. Note assessed value, year built, sqft, last sale.
- Sales by Neighborhood — Click the neighborhood code on VCPA → see all recent sales nearby.
- Zillow / Redfin — Free Zestimate is rough but useful as a check. Use 3+ sources.
- Realtor.com — Recently sold filter for your radius and bed/bath count.
Aim for 3-5 comps within 1 mile, sold in last 6 months, similar sqft (±20%) and bed count.
Skip Trace — Manual Steps
The Skip Trace button opens free people-search sites in new tabs with the owner's name pre-filled. Always cross-reference 2+ sources — free data is messy.
- TruePeopleSearch — Best free starting point. Look for current address match and phone.
- FastPeopleSearch — Backup source. Different aggregator, sometimes catches what TPS misses.
- ThatsThem — Often has email addresses.
- Paste phone/email back into the lead's notes field.
Deal Calculator
Four strategies, each with editable defaults:
- Wholesale (70% Rule): MAO = (ARV × 70%) − Repairs − Your Fee. Standard for assigning to a flipper.
- Fix & Flip: MAO = ARV − Repairs − Holding − Closing − Desired Profit.
- BRRRR: Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. Aim for refi to cover all-in cost ("infinite return").
- Buy & Hold: Cash-on-cash return + cap rate calc.
Importing External Lists
The Import List button accepts CSV or PDF. Use cases:
- Monthly probate preliminary report from Volusia Clerk (PDF) — text is auto-extracted
- Delinquent tax list (CSV) — columns auto-mapped if standard
- Any other off-platform list — review and confirm before merging
How Often to Refresh
The scraper runs daily at 3am ET automatically (GitHub Actions). The tax roll baseline (for property addresses) should be refreshed monthly:
- Visit vcpa.vcgov.org/download
- Download the working tax roll (DBF format)
- Convert to CSV (Excel, or use the
scraper/util/dbf2csv.py tool)
- Compress to
tax_roll.csv.gz and place in data/
- Commit and push — next scrape uses the fresh data
Source Map
Every flag in your dashboard traces back to one of these official portals: