In your example, $250 in utility bills is much cheaper than $2500 to fix frozen-pipe damages!

Almost every reputable lender is going to have a draw process for any lender funded rehab portion. 

the way to go about it is turn it over to your insurance and get the police report.. sometimes insurance will then subjugate the claim and go after the tenant criminally I had that happen on one of my rentals where the tenant did 40k in malicious damage on a new construction home I purchased in MS. 

This ensures that any payout for damage or liability can be processed more smoothly, and it can help protect your interests if something happens on the property. 

If that is the case then I would say yeah work with an agent who has a solid reputation either here or from a friend referral.

When there is a sum of money in the bank, I’d rather buy another property than pay for fire damage, and I’m happier with the insurance coverage.  

Any tips anyone can share on how to find a reputable and trust-worthy contractor and/or a lawyer who can write up less riskier work contracts?

some roofs, tree damage and trash strewn around. 

We were not able to recover any yard damages due to other damages they had left that needed repair, which empted out their security deposit.

This also allows for property owners to more easily write-off assets that get damaged/destroyed as the value of these assets is determined as part of the study.