Should I use a broker when making an unsolicited offer?

[Ken P.]

A small team including property management company owner, key principal, additional key person, and I are considering making an offer for one or more 100+ unit apartment complexes in our area that we believe are being operated far below potential.  As a team we have operational experience in managing complexes of this size, and in raising funds, but no one on the team has made offers to purchase anything off-market before.   

My question - would we be wise to involve a local commercial property broker when we prepare our LOI and PA, and, if the recommendation is to do so, what do you see as the benefits of involving a commercial RE broker in the purchase process?

It's clear when the broker is listing a property what value they bring to the transaction, but when we are approaching a seller who hitherto had no plans to sell, it's not clear (at least to me) what value the broker brings besides a BOV.  A BOV alone doesn't seem like enough to justify paying a broker standard fees, but if there are other benefits to having one involved then we'd be willing to pay to have them be part of the transaction.