There are landlord/rental owner/multi family advocacy/ lobby groups... every city/state has them... they are our political voice and are always at the table when tenant/LL issues are being discussed.  

For example if they accept an offer with an escalation clause rather than issuing multiple counter offers, or simply allowing buyers to continue bidding against each other for as many rounds as possible, they may be leaving money on the table.

However, if I don't refinance, I will be leaving money on the table for a whole year.Thoughts?

Also, curious, what makes you think you're the only offer on the table? 

Provided you select a local team of independent, best-in-class service providers all focused on serving you with no conflicts of interest or under-the-table collusion, I see no reason to spend your hard-earned profits visiting the properties.

Both can bring valuable knowledge to the table, so it's wise to evaluate what you hope to get out of the conversation first.

Options 1 and 5 would be off the table for now.

Give a carpenter a saw, drill, router, hammer, sander etc and he can take some wood and turn it into a beautiful table and chairs. 

So if you go under contract at 160 and it appraises at 150, you need to come to the table with that 10k or you and seller have to agree to split it (they lose 5k and you give 5k), or the seller has to come down.

I am curious though if you have thought of going at this by yourself or if there is a specific benefit this partner brings to the table that you need/want as part of the deal?