Perhaps, raising his percentage or cut higher at least throughout the construction phase or even long term. 

So mull on those for some time before you make a move.Also, keep in mind Phase 3 bailout caused the market to go up.

Is it normal for commercial lenders, particular alternative funding firms, to require a non refundable deposit for appraisals, inspections and multi phase studies?  

It may soften a bit once we move out of the complete lockdown phase, as many sellers are waiting for that to list their properties, so there may be a glut around mid summer, and with the increased inventory may come slightly lower prices, although this market has literally never gone down significantly including during the GFC.

I also have some existing contacts that may make the transition a little easier.For multifamily I know CA may not be the best market I am open to looking into other markets once I get to the market research phase. 

There are plenty of cases where banks found a phase 1 report acceptable and the borrower misconstrued that as meaning the site was clean or did not pose a significant risk.

Currently, I’m in the research phase of the REI timeline, but I came across this property:https://www.redfin.com/SC/West...I did a quick calculation and the numbers were incredible. $15,000+ annual cash flow and over 30% ROI?

You can get around that by starting with a Phase I study.

@Ryan Evans just thought of a few other biggies:Definitely get an environmental inspection done as well (often called Phase I Site Assessment).

The economy is passing from the peak phase into the initial recession phase.