@Sarah Lewis Upfront, let me acknowledge that a I not familiar with tenancy law in CaliforniaThe answers to many of your questions will depend on what is contained in your lease, and what the tenancy law in California dictates.  

(First, you should have some signed acknowledgement from your walk-through that the premises were bug-free at move-in.

With that said do we have to make it extremely legal or can it be just a promissory note that acknowledges that I will pay her back monthly at about 8-9% interest.

Given that you've acknowledged your company does direct sales, clearly you were lying through your teeth!

Acknowledge the negative emotion or any tension in the situation - it diffuses it.

Obviously, any contract you have with a buyer must have language acknowledging the right of first refusal, and a timeline for eliminating it.

I will try to reprogram myself in that way but I have to acknowledge it will be a difficult task for me.

Once the lender acknowledges the reinstatement, you can then discuss doing a Subject To with the seller.There are all kinds of vagaries when buying foreclosures.

Applicant acknowledges they were advised to seek appropriate counsel regarding the risks of renting a property “sight unseen”.

Get an affidavit with signatures  acknowledging monthly rent feom the tenants.