The applicant, however, is being held up by a "pending identity verification" alert, and as of this post, it has been two days...and no change, no report.I've spoken with the applicant, he did everything required by transunion, and paid the fee.I've tried to reach a "customer service agent" to speak to someone, and on two different occasions, i've been on hold for two hours each time, and I've had to abandon the calls and throw in the towel. 

I was under the impression from one of the banks that since all conventional loans are federally funded, they would have very similar (if not identical) interest rates.

Identity theft is a big issue 

I found an article where State attorney sued his previous company and fined up over six figures for fraudulent dealings - I won't go in details to protect the identity. 

However, I would be responsible for sending you a text/email/voicemail, depending on your preferred method, with a detailed explanation as to what happened.2)It is imperative that as an owner/investor you specify in your agreements that if the repair (non-emergency) is over X amount of $$$,  the PM is required to submit proposals that are identical in scope and that only you, as the investor, can choose the contractor.  

You just have to be careful because Craigslist and Zillow hide your identity where fb marketplace will not.

I might also consider staggering the leases if all the units are identical.

If you get to identical tenants, you must offer the place to the first applicant, offering them a defined deadline to pay all fees to you.

@Jay Maranan just an FYI, my primary property is 5 stories, of which almost all the carpet in the units has been removed(90%)...the original flooring is beautiful oak, that was original installed over 90 years ago, however, the units that just have the carpet torn up, sanded and stained the original flooring are much louder that the units, that I lay down subfloor, underlayment foam, and new floors over the original solid wood(I know it is sinful to purists, to not refinish the original wood, but it cost more, takes longer, is louder, and less isolation of bugs, and leaves some of the earthquake retrofit hardware exposed, if I do that) ....BUT, with carpet and/or wood floors it will be noisey...that's why the 5th floor are the "PentHouse" units, since no upstairs neighbors, even though identical layout to the below units, they can demand a bit of premium, especially if your new tenant has lived in apartments before.

My situation is alarmist identical to yours and so far it has worked out well for me.