If the claim can be disputed, OTA disputes it and makes it hard to collect and the host may simply give up.i think pm, airBnB, guest and LL all know who was responsible for the vape in the toilet, but ota did not charge guest or pay for it and gave the guest a discount (a discount for an issue that the guest was responsible for).  

A buddy of mine talked to his tax guy who told him these “Distributions” aren’t currently taxable right now and simply adjust the basis downwards (almost like a return of principal), but when the principal actually DOES get returned (generally about 5 years out in this case), that the difference between the amount returned and this downward adjusted basis is taxable at capital gains rates - if held longer than 1 year, generally 15% tax.  

Will they be doing other types of work like getting through the financing, becoming the guarantor, finding the deals, crunching the numbers, doing the accounting, or are they just simply doing less work?

I tell my clients all the time that the quality of your property will directly determine the quality of your tenants.This is a very important rental property investing fundamental most new investors always forget or ignore simply because they are just too desperate for  "Cash-Flow".

It simply depends on your time frame, when you want to actually begin renting the property out short term, and what the loan terms are.

For consulting with a CPA.As mentioned above you can simply take monthly distributions, but what is most important is how you are set up. 

Without rent control i either raise their rent far above market rents so they give me notice (my preferred method) or i simply do not renew their lease.

Is it best to simply increase rent by a fixed amount (e.g., $700) to cover this, or are there other strategies for handling utilities in this situation?

If there's a hole, it may be a red flag.b) sensitivity analysis: I examine all the assumptions, and make sure I can live with the worst case scenarios.c) "Stall and see": if they are getting money over multiple years, and there is no penalty for investing later, I would usually wait so I get some real performance data, versus having to look at theoretical pro forma information.d) Recession stress test: I will not invest in anything, until I subject it to recession level stress and see if I can live with the result.

Time allows for adjustments, scaling, and reinvestment in ways that short-term projects simply can’t achieve.