He said it’s an very unusual request and due to federal laws, I needed some form of documentation for anything extra being put on the HUD statement.

The monetized installment sale is usually a good strategy when someone has a big capital gain and they don't want to exchange (or even reinvest in real estate).

The owner just repeatedly paid the (steep) fine and returned to business as usual few weeks later.

What would compel a landlord to take on a tenant without a lease (other than extra rent)?

Usually your broker provide an extensive training - you don't need any paid coaches.If you're currently with a small broker, try to switch to big chains like Keller Williams - they have excellent training.No need to pay for training when you already paid for your RElicense.I used to pay for Zillow/Trulia/Realtor leads - it's useless, almost 0% return on my money.When I switched to big brokerage, I've got so much training that it all worked.

Mine are outside the city in the sticks in the mountains so websites aren’t fantastic but they st least have phome numbers of who to call and in my market that conversation usually goes something like “what’s a permit?”

Usually an Alliant agent can do these transactions using a third party company called Title Bridge.

Thanks @Michele B. and @Mike McCarthyI think I'm just going to wait the extra day or so until the report can be viewed by both sides and then see what they come back with and can give towards the repair list.

As for apprx costs, they're usually between 40-60k.Good luck on your project. 

Ive built relationships with a lot of the builders sales reps in my area over the years, so Im usually able to cut through a lot of the BS that someone who hasnt done new construction runs into.