Does it make sense to cheap out over the few thousand dollars it will cost to go through a proper escrow and title process?

That way they will never have to go through probate. 

I don't want to go through with getting one (which I wouldn't mind doing) if there really isn't an advantage. 

Depends on the lender.If it has yet to go to foreclosure and you are trying to buy it prior or at sale - the answer is a hard no. 

Contingency:No need to go through the same process to illustrate contingency but contingent funds can be applied to the loan interest example above.

I can expand it if i desire, but it minimizes the size of the post.

I received my desired density and $1.3M in imputed equity that recently allowed me to finance the construction at 87% LTC through a bank.

You should be good to go. 

I had been using Stessa, which I really loved, but it is buggy and the banking connection to Chase was continually breaking, which I needed to re-connect, but when I did that I had to go through 200+ transactions and re-allocate the expenses. 

That area is desirable and will most likely have negative cash flow for a while.