Out of the blue, a neighbor of one of the properties contacted us to ask our interest in selling, even though we weren't even considering it. 

I work on the commercial side of lending, but I can provide contact info for the residential RE Manager, if you like.

I like to check loopnet for going lease rates to run projections in the absence of better data.

You might contact some lawn care providers, and get estimates of cost of providing Lawn Care Services, and give tenants the option of taking care of lawn, or having it included in the rent (Estimated Cost + Markup).  

What would be the best way to try and contact them to see if they have any interest in selling.

Grab a drink and just talk with people, and make contacts. 

Tough to predict ten years out, none of the data providers go out further than five.According to CoStar, 1-3 star office properties in Poway have a 3.4% vacancy that trends up gradually to 6% by 2022, with consistent negative absorption of about 2500 sf / quarter.

The data on home prices in the area is very interesting - I didn't know that.

i couldnt find any data provider that offers them.thank you!!

There is a BP book on investing with low or no money down you probably want to read.I also recommend practicing with the real estate calculators - getting the math right is the key to a “good deal”.Feel free to contact me with any questions or post them in the appropriate forum - the community here is great.