Tenants are far more demanding, unrealistically so,  than homeowners and this must be considered when making decisions.

In general, the ones to avoid are the ones that: Don't allow financing or a finance contingency (it can be a good indication they are selling above market value)Don't allow for your own independent property inspectionAre not realistic with their pro forma's (i.e. they don't include vacancy or maintenance projections or use unrealistically low vacancy factors)Require you to pay for any renovation upfrontSell only in cheap. low end neighborhoodsDon't accurately represent the neighborhood/property classificationDon't have consistent rehab standards for all properties

to the batch of them, which obviously isn't generally going to happen, and then this wonky mix of unrealistic expectations ends up on you and your agent's lap as the buyer. 

I just bailed out of a deal that had been on the market almost two years - clearly because the owner has unrealistic expectations.

The 20% return is pretty unrealistic.

I know that the market is a little unrealistic as far as most home prices but I figured of the market tanks which no one can predict that I can still hold on to the property and the market will eventually come back up.

It seems with all the deals I've practiced analyzing so far that I'd have to purchase these properties for WELL below listing price (to a point where it seems unrealistic to expect to be able to find a seller willing to negotiate so low...)Here it is: 2702 East Willis Ave, Fresno CA 93726$179,900= Listing price (I ran the numbers at this price and came up with a negative cash flow.

Are my expectations unrealistic?

Most of the people who have trouble here are the people that try to nickel and dime the pm too much or have unrealistic expectations.

The idea is that they will lighten your load, but don't ever expect to not have a finger on the pulse of your business, unless you want to lose money.Just think of all of the really wealthy superstars who have lost everything because they trusted a manager completely.The real problem is that the PM industry has somehow been created in a way that is completely unrealistic.