I’ve been investing in the Tampa market for over 20 years, and in just the past year, I've bid on several mid-size apartment buildings and at least a dozen duplexes.

Thank you Ned, that is exactly right, we actually check a condo/townhouse about 2 weeks ago, the thing was a condo with a basement, I cannot tell if it was a condo or townhome, anyway, the ceiling in the first floor was bowing, the 2nd floor, one of the bedroom was sinking, could not tell how this damage was done but the walls came apart from the floor, you could see the roof of the unit bowing inwards towards the structure a bit, and their "general contractor" estimate that for 5k they could straighten the property and level everything, even 1 window and 1 door looked so uneven that you would think  there was something wrong with your eyes...5k for structural damage, good luck with that one, we ran as far as we could from that....but we have seen they do inflate their ARV, since we learned the hard way , we go through these deals with a magnifying glass, I knew I was not so picky, numbers do not lie.Another thing that caught my attention, which I do not know if I am overly suspicious now that I am older, but they want to get the closing for us at the same time/day they are getting the property from whoever they buying it, which it seems to me they try to save on the closing by having a "dual" closing when in reality is just 1 closing and we are the one paying for it...I do not know there are few things that do not click right with this folks.

Obviously you will also want to walk all of the units physically during your due diligence period to see the condition of the apartments inside.

The core market (hole of the donut) is booming and lots of young people moving to the city center and new apartments, condos, restaurants, amenities etc.Alot of the sun-belt is experiencing alot of net-migration...versus at least some cities in the Northeast not so much. 

Recently I moved out of an apartment complex after a 10 month lease.

My family member wants to invest in a 24 unit apartment with me so I'm trying to run the numbers.My question:What reasonable terms can I get from my PM once I get a large apartment complex?

Consider getting a part time job if you can't find anything.

Are multi-family rentals a strong investment in the Tampa area compared to condos/apartments?

I can justify any price (and some high fee syndicators are still doing so), if I just play with assumptions, prepay and buy down my interest rate, and hope that sub-5% cap rates will be returning in the next few years.But if you know your market and market cycle, have an idea where interest rates may be going (this is an educated guess for all of us), and then have your assumptions, you can certainly have the conversations you reference with brokers and see what their take is on pricing and if it is worth writing.Finally, I have said this before and will continue to say it, whether we are talking single family homes or 400 unit apartment complexes, off-market purchases do not make something a deal.  

But the 2 bedroom apartment upstairs covers most of our monthly payment and we have everything we need with a 1 bed apartment setup down here.