Should I increase the bid to their asking price?

No special development taxes...Sold One year now, 16% increase in equity.

I would assume that with an increase in renter occupied units in an area, the competition would be higher and therefore it would make sense to go outside of the area of competition (given other demographic information indicates the area is still appropriate for a buy and hold strategy).

We've seen a huge increase in inspections, and they are very closely looking at roofs.

My rule of thumb for rehab costs is try to gain at least $2 value increase for every $1 spent on labor and materials.

Looking to expand my portfolio and seeking lenders to partner with to grow my business.  

Some towns have brutal rent control ordinances that can prevent you from increasing your annual rents. 

Is it true that you can increase the price of a home that is offered with seller financing so perhaps this amount offsets the discounted payoff offered by the note buyer or at least this increase may pay all or some of the Realtor's commission?

It appears the units are below market, however with some cosmetic repairs and perhaps some capex's I feel I could increase the rent by at minimum (based on local comps) 68%.I would offer 85% of list and estimated $20,000 in repairs/upgrades (this is probably a generous estimate - the property appears to be in good shape, basically needs a face lift).With all these figures, including the 50% rule, financing with 20% down @ 3.5%, I come out to a profit of $262 per unit and a cash-on-cash return of 9.53%.So, does this seems reasonable?

My question though is that if the most recent property tax is based on the previous sale price, if your purchase price increases dramatically then wouldn't you get a huge spike in taxes?