Legal action in progress. 

That's wild.Would concur to tell tenants to cancel checks if they haven't been cashed yet.Moving PMs: Don't quote me on legal ramifications of this, but if the contract with your PM has expired, triple check if you have to provide them fees/notice of cancelling the agreement.

I think it depends on your goals here and this is likely more of a legal question than it is a tax question.

Stop hanging out with your deadbeat buddies who spend all day drinking, talking sports, and otherwise wasting away.

If you walked up to Michael Jordan and said, "I want to learn sports" he would walk away.

Also, there is the issue of the legal ST rental regulations, which can be an advantage compared with the US or not. 

The system was set up to allow those claims to go through, and with the right legal help, insurance companies would often settle to avoid going to court.

If you need financial help, ask under the "Finance, Tax, and Legal" forum.

Could you legally begin to rent this unit in December?

I’ve read the legal paperwork regarding what’s done in order to quiet the title on a tax lien property.