Cover the cloth with plastic wrap, weighting it with a book if necessary.

(If the image doesn't display well, you can also find the chart here)I also made note of various helpful reviews (many from BP):LifeProof +s: "best overall," "easy to install, great value," LifeProof -s: "tabs break during install"TM Allure Ultra +s: "held up great"TM Allure Ultra -s: negative reviews on houzz, subfloor unevenness issuesSmartcore Ultra -s: negative reviews on houzzNuCore +s: "great over imperfect subfloor"NuCore -s: "shouldn't be used in wet rooms"DuraLax -s: weight limit and issues with area rugsMohawk SolidTech -s: lots of bad reviews on floorcriticsCoreTec +s: great product at great priceI ended up going with CoreTec ProPlus since I found it on sale for $2.50, and I'm actually not very happy with it! 

Typically these windows operated with a series of weights that are located under the trim and roughly 4” to the right and left of the windows.

Is there a rickety old deck that could collapse under the weight of 4-5 housemates and their friends?

On chairs, you’ll need to look at weight limits, because I’ve seen a lot with a low 225 lb limit.  

I'd weight the options of high EMD with an inspection contingency so my money isn't at risk, and low(er) EMD with no contingency and I could lose my money.

I don’t think you can but doesn’t hurt to ask if there is a way to lessen the burden- i think the exchange has to be more than original but thought i would ask.

And truth is it's far FAR more weighted on a person, the personality, vs any company organization or lack there of. 

A lot of times, these types of lifestyle choices will start limiting you down very quickly to specific areas, and since you are going to be living in the property, are likely to have a heavy weight on the neighborhoods.  

That seems like it should carry some weight, along with knowing the the traffic patterns of the booking cycle etc.