Once you exceed 100+ units that range is from 4-5%.  10% is a reasonable range for single family homes and smaller plexes, but excessive for anything of 50 units or more. 

If your agent gets buy and sell commissions, and her husband gets paid to as the GC to do the rehab, it could easily be argued that there is no need to split any profits, some profit incentive like an 80/20 or 70/30 would seem more reasonable. 50/50 seems excessive, but that doesn't mean a 50/50 is not a good deal in a particular scenario.

Not everything on the initial list will get auctioned.You might be right about excess funds, however the previous owner very rarely knows about this and there is a pretty tight time limit.  

You can negotiate for repairs in excess of what you need; you keep the extra.Get the bank to lend on appraised value, not purchase price.

There has to be some opportunities here - everyone here locally is fighting over deals like dogs for a scrap of meat on a steak bone - I want to find something else to do or create another revenue stream while deal flow is slow and the excess landlords get shaken out of the market by some sort of correction that needs to happen to weed out the bad operators.  

Richard has been very successful in securing investment properties in excess of 50,000 square feet for multiple investment firms and private owners in the Inland Empire area.

-In an S-Corporation you have $2,000 deductible loss, $2,000 capital gain on the distribution in excess of basis, and a $1,000 suspended loss.   

Excessive wear and tear?

Tim Ferriss notes ( from others, he didn't come up with it) that the very things you seek to fulfill you, destroys you in excess.

:D Also, if you are that guy/gal that networks and knows everyone, how many people in your state/city do you estimate use direct mail in volume excess of 500 pieces/mo?