Own a few rentals and hoping to be on my way to financial independence soon 

There’s going to be sellers suing their own agents for refusing to work with independent buyers. 

You can learn to do this independently or get a rockstar REALTOR to lead the way.

Take a look at BP's blog where new articles are published every day: https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog4.

I can not find the past owner to ask him to request the pay off for a fee which I am willing to do also What state is this in? Depending

Also check out this article published last year on BP on this exact topic/question - hope it helps!

I have read a lot of books published by bigger pockets and other authors on real estate investing.

Be sure and read @Avery Carl's book, Short Term Rental, Long Term Wealth, published by BP. 

Step by step you are working your way to being an independent player where you can do the deal on your own eventually.  

:P There isn't anywhere near enough information in the original post to provide specific advice so I asked the poster to reach out.  10,000 foot overview the best advice would be to speak with a knowledgeable INDEPENDENT insurance agent and be as forthright as possible with your situation.