I am not here to advise you as a I am not an investment advisor or financial advisor, but I will share some of my investing strategy.

If my buyers walk then I will be forced to sue them for any monetary damages that will cause as well.

They don't practice in all 50 states but they do have a practice in TX and can advise on how to complete this paperwork and record properly.

Since I have little experience, can you advise on those things that can be overlooked by a newbie landlord like me?

But was advised to also carry umbrella personal liability.  

I would advise to start small. 

Are there any potential risks after I take ownership, like monetary penalties from the city?

It is difficult to answer this without running numbers, I would highly recommend speaking with TrueBooks if you're set on them to advise on this.

What this means is the trustor has zero obligation to the lender past the property in the case of a foreclosure the lender cannot receive any kind of monetary judgment against the owner.. and for the benefit of anyone reading this.. ( I am sure you know what a purchase money loan is.) 

I would advise to look at homes that are less than $850k which would mean looking out of that city.