Any property manager worth partnering with will be a member- I'd call some PMs in the cities you are looking at and ask if they are NARPM members, if so, ask if they'll share the latest vacancy and rent datasheets, they're gold for deal analysis. 

There is a chain link fenced area with gates to keep the trash cans.

Is the population growing, are big chains starting to move in if they're not already there, are jobs dependant on a specific employer or is there decent diversity (ex: we have tech and Boeing up here, but tech is starting to move to working from home and Boeing is starting to move some production out of state), whats the median income, where are the bad neighborhoods, etc.

There is so much cheap money floating around now that I suspect the game is no longer just about cash flow but about sheltering good debt.Any available real estate is likely one of the best shelters of cheap money.Since cash will almost never be this cheap again,it's common sense that hiding as much of this as possible today even in a marginal deal is a no brainer since the same cash may cost triple the interest rate within the next decade.It beats burying it in the front yard.And neither Gold nor crypto cash flows.Happy plunging inventory !

There are still quite a few little pockets of downtown that I know will be gold 10 to 15 years down the line.

I can tell you Steve this simple conversation we are having is GOLD  for those in this business who may not realize fully how credit works. 

But the are chain banks that also have a different loan officer at each branch.

In fact, the 4 foot chain link fence is the OG from when it was built!    

It’s kind of like the guys that got rich selling shovels to the gold miners.Now for my advice.

They basically hold the building liable rather than the owner and that liability transfers from owner to owner until someone deleads it and breaks the chain.