I feel more a moral obligation in this spot of not being taken advantage of. 

Moral of the story a payoff demand can not be unreasonably with held if a party can prove their interest in the real property which seems fairly evident in this case.  

Because I would of had to fire them then get a new PM to take overI suppose the moral of this story is:Weigh your pros and consTry not to panic and think rationallyStep in when needed (it is your business) if you don't feel something is right inquireKnow your market, they have the title of property manager, but that doesn't mean you have to take their word on everything, in this case it helped because I told them to drop the price. 

--meaning the physical, organizational, communication systems, etc. in place drive employee behavior and ultimately morale. 

Talk about stepping in poo.The moral of this story is talk to everyone you can.

The more people say that, the less competition there is those people who know how to do it legally, morally and ethically.You can wholesale legally.

At least you won't be out everything.But I think the moral here is there need to be more a process before the initial offer, definitely more due diligence and safety.  

@Alexander Felice - I see both points; however isn't there some sort of moral or ethical obligation to the neighborhood in which your rental units are present to not be blind to criminal activity taking place on your property?

@Ross McKenzieAssuming you didn't just choose a realtor that has no ethics or morals at all and that you are looking at MLS type properties it is unlikely your broker violated his obligations just for you. 

Moral of that example, from a personal finance side, always propose using a cigar wrapper, if she says yes, it's about you, then go together to pick out your ring!