So yes, you will want to see the financials, since it has to make sense as an investment for you, but if the seller is remotely sophisticated he knows what his price is, and wants to see if you come in higher.To your question, my approach has always been to have a general idea of the price I would pay up front, before I make the call. 

That’s why sophisticated investors establish a reserve fund for future replacement expenses.And, as answer to your original question, no, local housing authorities do not care that you paid too much for your property; they don’t care that you miscalculated the condition of the systems in the property you bought; they don’t care that you leveraged too high and they don’t care that you left yourself without sufficient liquid reserves.

At some point, we might switch to 506(c) offerings, but I'm always more hesitant to go that route because it greatly limits who can invest in your deal.The benefit to using a 506(c) offering is the way that you can market the deal, but I often find that most investors (accredited or sophisticated) are highly unlikely to invest with you if you don't have a preexisting relationship with them. 

From the basic to the sophisticated, I would like to compile a list.

If you put together something more sophisticated with a preferred return to me that should just be a floor for the sponsor and they should get a make-up return given that this is a speculative project with zero cash flows except the terminal cash flow.  

I also develop fairly sophisticated software applications with MS Access and I developed several software applications for that I give to people for free.

@Matt Wilkes While a preferred return structure is "preferred" (no pun intended) by most sophisticated investors, you are under no constraints to only use that structure.

There are a lot of layers to being a sophisticated investor, and you will get there, but everybody has to start somewhere.

Start building relationships with people who syndicate now because most syndications are 506B (you need to have a pre-existing relationship with a general partner as an accredited investor or sophisticated investor in the deal before you can invest).

Mining operations even sandstone can have environmental concerns depending on how the excavation machinery was managed.