"The asset class is known for its survival during a downturn, but with so much class-A product on the market, will its reputation hold?"

You could very well be a good candidate for a move into commercial, NNN, or fractional products that are all 1031 compliant

I'm looking for brokers that work with a number of lenders to source a variety of loan products, and can help me look for the best rates and terms for my specific needs.

A lot of forum members are very knowledgeable in their respective fields related to real estate investing, whether that is real estate sales, wholesaling, flipping, rentals, lending, self-directed IRA and Solo 401k investing, or tax and legal guidance.Discounts on some products and services are offered to BP members: https://www.biggerpockets.com/perks/proUse the Bigger Pockets glossary to learn more about real estate terms that may be new to you: https://www.biggerpockets.com/rei/glossaryThere are a few self-contained guides that you can access here: https://www.biggerpockets.com/guides

Outside of specialty products and programs.

Leave alone and maybe in 10 days he will sell to me at 245 ish#2 Pay more (say 265k) collect rent at market rate of1900 per month for 3 years with agreement on him making repairs as they arise#3 Loan him 50k at 15% and he says banks will cash out refinance in about 6 to 12 months.Is there a deal here somewhere?

If your agent/broker is knowledgeable about those types of products and has them available, it's likely more efficient for you to implement a single "master" policy for your properties.   

They finance newbies.Most now offer a range of products, including temp to perm loans - great for folks that want to use the BRRRR strategy. 

Luckily for me, doesn't affect me at all. 

The realtor and lawyer probably know each other and the lawyer isn't protecting you.Beyond all of that, from a construction point of view: a property that is riddled with permit and inspection related delays will not be a good end product.