So, while on the surface it sounds like you are entitled to your money back, a closer look at the contract and circumstances is needed to verify that.

Would you consider refunding or crediting the pet deposit under these circumstances?

We have had people leave early and in some cases I did give them a bit of cash back due to the circumstances.

Because this clause wasn't in the lease agreement,You hear these kinds of excuses and explanations (vary by circumstances) everywhere you go nowadays.We're becoming a nation where the Law is subject to personal excuses by indviduals that aren't suposed to interpret laws.

On the investment side there are quite a few elderly people in very bad circumstances.

I'm not sure how they can not see it was not an "act of god" with the circumstances.

If you care to learn about the distinctions, read these posts:https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/517/topics/1215989-expl...https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/51-tax-legal-issues-con...2.

If the reason they ran out of money was due to an unforeseen circumstance and they have a path to recovering, it may make sense to send them more money.  

The issue with section 179 expense is that you normally have to operate at positive income.Under most circumstances, bonus depreciation is better since you can take bonus depreciation even if you operate at negative income. 

Therefore, you would need to file partnership returns for each LLC.Given these considerations, both approaches could be correct, depending on the specific circumstances of your LLCs and state laws.