and do you have something better to invest that equity into or are you just going to go out and buy a bunch of toys?

you need to look for good cash returns otherwise it is just another shiny toy that costs you money.

With my history of rental properties I occasionally toy with the idea of getting into commercial rental property(apartments).

This project and his own personal stories of success have convinced me to sell my BMW, motorcycle, my big screen tv various toys, and picked up a second job to get some capital together.

Before I took the leap, my goal was to payoff everthing I wanted..homes, cars, boats and toys as well as got myself into paying charge cards off at the end of each month (good habit to have).

General negotiation-- I like Getting to Yes.

I haven't been able to find many duplexes out there that make sense, but you have a great deal there.Since I'm out of state, I'm working with a few turnkey operators now, but toying with the idea of leaving my job and moving out there to invest once we build a modest savings!

They were toying with the idea of cutting the basement floor, replacing that portion, then near the foundation, pushing another pipe through the cracked pipe out the foundation and to the sidewalk. 

I did start out with an FHA however I have been toying with refinancing as it the market has done fairly well here and the home value has increased enough to drop the MIP off as the value to loan has reached the 80% mark.

If I'm understanding your question, I will sometime advise my clients to include statement indicating they will beat any offer by X amount up to Y amount, requiring some form of disclosure about said offer.