With prospective tenants, it's usually the prior landlord (versus the current landlord) that has more to say and a more practical picture of their rental payment history in my experience. 

@Taylor Green I know my local MLS includes data about past transactions for any given property, so yes, a real estate agent is probably your best bet. 

You bet!!

As noted by @Sean Brooks your best bet is to have a discussion with the listing agent, state your position with empirical data (recent sales) and hope to get a call in a few months when the seller/agent check in with reality.   

The hardest thing for me is deciding how much to do or not to do.  In my area, I've seen ok retail properties linger on the market for six months to a year.  I've seen ok flips take months to sell.  So I try to stand ...

When trying to predict long-term rate movements I was thinking more about your exit strategy in five years and what conditions would be like then versus your offered adjustable rate.

Your best bet is going to be through a wholesaler or source your deals directly with your own marketing.

How much would you be looking to spend versus rent the property for?

Better to have it and not need it versus the alternative.

If everyone else has a disposer and dishwasher then that would be the expectation and you are at a disadvantage.I bet the husband had to get rid of his wife's healthy cooking and if he throws them in the trash she might see it so he used the disposer.