Because you state your goal is to prevent liability I don’t think the LLC will do you any good.

just really disappointing that the loan officer knew we wanted to rent it out and when the real estate savvy guy wasn't there, made the other buyer sign something preventing that. 

If accurate then the SEC rules are designed to prevent unsophisticated investors from getting into this exact situation.

If the tenants leave cereal boxes out and the house gets overrun with ants, it's still your responsibility as the landlord to have pest control in place to prevent or treat the problem.

We do preventive rodding, but I guess it didn't get the job done.  

Make sure you understand the basic math, what qualifies as a good investment, how to manage your investment and prevent losses, etc.I would start with Set For Life by Scott Trench.

@Ryan BrayHUD will not turn on the utilities and my guess is you are outside your 15 day window where you could at your own expense provided that the PCR report did not find anything that would prevent it.Your option is to ask your lender if there is any work around such as an escrow for repairs or an as-is appraisal. 

Clean it up a bit to get most bang for the buck add ons and preventative damage items like water leaks.

@Don Konipol I don't think Nathan was suggesting that honesty and ethics will prevent being named in a lawsuit.  

Otherwise, you could also provide prevention recommendations somewhere on the lease that includes what you've mentioned above.Assuming you don't have a lawyer to help with your rental agreement you can find some sample clauses on a site such as Law Insider.