Should I offer to pay them for their consultation, or are these types of questions common as part of the PM vetting process and is a "courtesy service"?

If they don't know where they are going, no matter what else you talk about, you aren't buying that house unless you can solve the problem of where they are going.The most colossal mistake in all off-market acquisition is that people use the same dumb scripts for all sellers and they almost always talk about a cash offer.

I met with him the next day and made an offer in the range of $40,000 to $50,000.

As an example we purchased a $3.2 million non performing note for $1.875 million, and offered the borrower a discount to $2.65 million for a payoff.  

Baselane offers cash flow at the unit, proper or portfolio level.

This was a property offered by a wholesale seller.

In reality, you're not going to want the kind of tenants that want what you have to offer but aren't in a position to buy.

Thanks again, and will be grateful for any more info you offer.   

It is important to look for locations with strong economic growth, rising demand for housing, employment, vacation and infrastructure developments, as well as properties that offer the potential for value appreciation or steady cash flow.

I’m making a few assumptions: 1) at least some buyers and sellers will accept much less agent handholding than commonly assumed, 2) the primary value that agents add is a) pricing guidance and b) advising clients on offers and counter-offers, and 3) there’s no truly compelling reason why North America has the highest average commissions in the rich world.