This why vetting upfront is so important.On the other hand, a larger contractor may have real assets in the company or even a reputation that they want to protect so they want to find away to avoid getting into legals which waste time and money for them.With respect to contract size, in reality anything under 100K is not worth a full blown lawsuit as the legals will eat you alive even if you win; small claims court may be your best bet if you are OK managing the process or maybe using a paralegal.On the emotional side, I strongly urge you to put that aside.

Revisiting this... after inspections by plumber, foundation, and AC (not a general inspector) and winning the fight to get utilities turned on, I've come up with $25k of repairs/replacements. 

I'm trying to stay ahead of the process by looking for a reputable and trusted home inspector now.

So a small problem like a leaky sink which could of been fixed by a plumber easily now is a flooded kitchen before you get a call because the tenant was trying to save $100 and was ok with keeping a bucket or towel under the leak.

I worry that it hurts my reputation as a landlord since I trusted TurboTenant.

You don't want to strain any relationships with the seller or else you could develop a bad reputation. 

If you network with your local investor groups you should be able to find someone that is reputable in your community that does private lending. 

I'm currently seeking out tools to use for my wholesaling business and i wanted to know if there were any affordable and reputable skip tracing services out there? 

We are a full service property management company that has a great reputation with city officials, tenants and owners.

I know this is not what you are asking, but make sure you use a good reputable qualified intermediary when you do the 1031 exchange.