Do you have extra space on your property for other storage? 

You might find that they could charge enough extra rent to pay for themselves.

May be worth the extra cash on hand and leaving it in the deal. 

If you can buy all your kitchen appliances at once and ask for an extra discount or at least free delivery & installation, that's great too.

I'm just being extra careful (as I should) with the local team handling the transactions.

How certain of the appreciation are you would also play into that question.Run some scenarios on what you could do with the extra cash vs what you stand to gain from the appreciation play and decide based on that and your goals.

At least get something extra from it.

The main thing is to find motivated sellers before they list their homes with a Realtor.

Are you primarily motivated by the idea of ownership in the assets rather than someone else owning and managing it?

Emphasize that these extra steps would protect both the property and your investment.