Purchasing from a Wholesaler, what's the process?

[Stanley Luo]

I'm planning on purchasing a property from a wholesaler.  They're asking for a $2500 Earning Money Deposit (Non-refundable), If I was interesting in purchasing the Purchase & Sale Agreement from them.  

These are the questions I currently have:

Where will the EMD be transferred to?

Will I receive my $2500 EMD back if the title wasn't clear and there's lien on the property?

When will I actually find out when the title is clear or not clear?

What is the actual process of when I decided I am interested in the contract and the wholesaler agrees to assign it to me?  

Does the contract cancel out if the title isn't clear?

Should I do my own title search first before agreeing to purchase the contract?

I'm just new to going through a wholesaler and have a boatload of questions.