You have an agreement with the agent and should honor it.Talk to the agent - ask questions - read the listing - do your comps - understand what you want to accomplish:how long listed (the longest on the market the more motivated the seller)how many times has the listed price been reduced (gives an idea of motivation)balance of mortgage, interest rate and terms and the amount of the mortgage payments (helps to determine the equity)vacant/occupied - by whom - rental - lease - how longwho is on the deed - can you buy part interest in the buildingcode violations - back on taxes or other lienswhat repairs necessary immediately - estimated costhow much will the seller contribute to buyer at settlementhas the seller been cooperative - reasonable - easy to showcurrent or back in payments (how long and how much)why hasn't the property sold (over-priced - seller not cooperative - area - condition - ALL PROPERTIES SELL AT THE RIGHT PRICE!)

A property management company would reduce the cashflow by a lot so if we're willing to deal directly with contractors for repairs, etc that would be better.

I understand their reasoning because of affordable housing, but they really should be working on how they can reduce the impact fees, taxes etc,... for developers to build more affordable housing or allowance for investors to purchase old hotels, land etc.... to also provide housing for homeless families etc...

It could be part of a larger program to reduce expenses and pass along costs.

In general, all of the costs associated with rehabbing the flip would go into the basis of the property and would reduce the gain at the time of the sale.There are many factors that impact your situation so find a qualified tax preparer that specializes in real estate to give you advice specific to your situation.Ed

This obviously reduces the cash flow from the property itself since it is the equity that generated the cash flow and not the property.

The corp profit from the interest I pay it will be reduced as i take a salary from the corp large enough to and use my carry forward losses in my personal name to reduce my corp tax to zero.

I wouldn't ask a realtor to reduce his fee for me.  

Track the income and expenses of everything you do in some sort of report and review it regularly with others you trust to possibly reduce expenses and increase your income and helps your company grow.  

Many items below $2,500 can be expensed rather than capitalized, which also reduces your depreciation recapture later in the life cycle of the property.