A commercial lease is more bullet proof than residential.

Only way to touch any of their security deposit would be to have hard proof that they were negligent, which is difficult to prove.   

But I also mentioned that I had a case where I asked for and received a "certificate of insurance" from the tenant certifying he had it, then a few days after sending me the proof, he cancelled it.

Make a use of funds, proforma, exit strategy, have your personal and business taxes and bank reports available, your credit score proof. 

Unless you have verifiable proof that the neighborhood is moving upward, this is a loser all day long, in my book.

I give them to my mortgage broker who pulls their credit every 6 months and asks them to fill out a mortgage application and provide all the necessary proofs.

Favorite book so far is Bulletproof Title Due Diligence by Alex Goldovsky.

What I also find is most important, that most people around here do not do, is get high quality photos, and bullet point what info you want to get across.

It is newly renovated with stainless appliances, tile and wood floors, designer stacked ledge stone, glass & stone backsplash, crown moulding, upgraded lighting, ceiling fans and an updated washer/dryer combo.

Or just bite bullet and get the house for what i bid