Such as paying your state taxes to a ‘charitable’ fund in the state of CA to be able to deduct your state taxes as a charitable deduction not subject to a 10k cap instead of as taxes paid.

.#3 seems like a lot of work for not as much reward as #1

The other is once he has the job locked down, he doesn't really have an incentive to fix it fast since there is no real reward at the end of it while you have to cover the carrying costs. 

As such, I reward them with continued participation in the deal beyond what might be prudent on the surface. 

I know I have a weak spot sometimes for putting in 75% of the effort in exchange for 50% of the reward.

The higher the risk the higher the reward.

This can definitely be a scary but rewarding experience! 

The chase is what makes this so rewarding, at least for me.

Shopping now for a credit card with cash back or other usable reward tied to it. 

And if you can be patient it will reward you greatly.