But effective?  

The Retainer Fee is credited towards whatever they buy from us in the 90 days, so in effect, costs them nothing.Note: we're not doing this to make money, but to avoid the time-wasters.

It's hard to guess how soon regulations will become effective.

Closing CostsMake sure you also budget for closing costs, which are a collection of fees and payments made to the various parties involved in your transaction.

Does anyone know when this went into effect?

Even with renovation costs and insurance costs the fix n flips are still making money.  

About the same as if you rent it, less costs.

These methods include: Detailed Engineering Cost ApproachDetailed Engineering Cost Estimate ApproachSurvey or Letter ApproachResidual Estimation ApproachSampling or Modeling ApproachExperience or “Rule of Thumb” ApproachIt’s important to understand the differences between the approaches including which one best fits your property and the reliability of each approach.DETAILED ENGINEERING COST APPROACHThis approach compiles the costs from construction and accounting reports to build a report.

It comes down to the most effective use of a marketing budget.

Then do a 'seismic strapping' to aid in halting further movement.IMHO this should cost closer to $20,000.