For my thesis, I'm conducting research into the practices and motivations of small landlords in Ontario to explore how various social and economic factors influence their business strategies, day-to-day property maintenance, and tenant interactions.Could anyone refer me to someone who might be interested in participating?

You having a brokerage model of influencing price is SUICIDE.   

The upgrades that HAVE to be made for rentability vs. those that will hopefully increase rental income can definitely influence the response.What are people's expectations?

When you see the property, you'll inevitably be influenced by your own taste when, in reality, what matters is first and foremost the the profitability of your investment.

Quote from @Mike Calvey: This exact situation has been playing out on Twitter in recent weeks, with many 'business influencers' who jumped into the syndication space a few years ago facing backlash.

I never thought an influencer can be so ruthless and conning even though he tries to build a guru reputation.

U get a few of these folks that are influencers and then you get the herd mentality..

No other contibutions and for sure post count does influence others who relate it to credibility.

Since this thread is about ES you can include how that program influenced said success.

The property age, location, interest rate, etc. will influence whether one cashflows at 2%. 1%, or 0.6%. the rules as someone already pointed out is just a guide.