HouseMax agreed that I am owed the full $14k, but they informed me that the "investor" and loan servicer (FCI) are refusing to refund the amount.I'm unsure who should be held accountable or what my legal rights are in this situation.

If the tenant wrote you that they were vacating and they did, then you have legal possession.  

This helps avoid our clients/real estate investors a lot of legal issues. 

.), $2.1K of travel (flights & rental cars), $2.3K in software subscriptions (PMS, etc.) and $300 in mealsManagement Fees ($1.7K) - PM fees, booking platform fees, etc.Cleaning Fees ($6.2K) - pass-through charge for guestRepairs & Maintenance ($10.5K) - General R&M ($1.5K), Painting ($1.2K), Plumbing ($1.5K), Pest Control ($500), R&M Supplies ($500), Labor ($3.5K), Linens, Soaps, Consumables ($1.5K)Legal & Professional ($1.5K) - LLC setup & lawyer fees ($350), inspections ($1.1K)Utilities ($6.4K) - Gas (avg. $63/mo.), Electric (avg. $121/mo.), Internet (avg. $60/mo.), Water & Sewer (avg. $107/mo.).Please let me know if you see anything glaring or things that I can work on bringing down or eliminating completely.It's important to note that up until I hired the full-service PM in April '24, I was self-managing from out of state and paid a local boots on the ground resource when needed.

Of course, you might want to consider the possibility that there is a real legal reason why they don't want anything to do with the problem, like they didn't actually have the right to give you a deed.

There are only two legal classes of rental STR are those less than 30 days, and LTR are those longer than 30 days.

Pref Rents are below "legal max" and can potentially remain there forever (or as long as that tenant exercises their legal right to renewals... allowable increases are based on the Pref rent as well.

LLC is just for legal protection here as the LLC is a passthrough entity for tax purposes.

Any advice or relevant legal references would be greatly appreciated!

Tenant Relationships and Legal Considerations Impact: Rent control laws often come with increased tenant protections and legal requirements that landlords must follow, such as eviction restrictions and rent increase caps.