We present an investigation of the dependence of H_2_O maser detection rates and properties on the mid-IR active galactic nucleus (AGN) luminosity, L_AGN_, and the obscuring column density, N_H_, based on mid-IR and hard X-ray photometry. Based on spectral energy distribution fitting that allows for decomposition of the black hole accretion and star formation components in the mid-infrared, we show that the megamaser (disk maser) detection rate increases sharply for galaxies with 12{mu}m AGN luminosity L_12um_^AGN^ greater than 10^42^erg/s, from <~3% (=10^23^/cm^2^ and N_H_>=10^24^cm^-2^, respectively. Combining these column density cuts with a constraint for high L_12um_^AGN^ (>=10^42^erg/s) predicts further increases in the megamaser (disk maser) detection rates to 19% (8%) and 27% (14%), revealing unprecedented potential increases of the megamaser and disk maser detection rates by a factor of 7-15 relative to the current rates, depending on the chosen sample selection criteria. A noteworthy aspect of these new predictions is that the completeness rates are only compromised mildly, with the rates remaining at the level of ~95% (~50%) for sources with N_H_>=10^23^/cm^2^ (N_H_>=10^24^/cm^2^). Applying these selection methods to current X-ray AGN surveys predicts the detection of >~15 new megamaser disks.

Cone search capability for table J/ApJ/892/18/sample (Basic properties (Table 2) and X-ray properties (Table 3) of the GBT X-ray sample)