The buyer should have some skin in the game and forfeit their deposit if they decide to cancel the purchase. 

I too am thinking about investing elsewhere other than my city beam cause if the earthquakes, u guess u have to do ur due diligence on a larger scale and as a 1st investment u have to look at the bigger picture coz u don't want to do a half job, get into skins bother and give up the game.Make things as easy as possible coz I find it's a lot to take in and u want ur first experience to get the wheels turning in the right direction!

After the cash out refinance, the investors now have little or no "skin in the game," so the split becomes 50/50).3. 

You can obtain the option and control the property for less skin, but you can forget that one with the realtors, too.  

But others may have their preference to have as little skin in the game as possible.

As you can see...there are many ways to skin this cat.so, what is your end goal?

Banks will expect to see some skin in the game from their borrowers.

We are lending at 12-14% + points right now and will not go above 70% ltvCan it be cheaper yes, but realize it is very expensive $ and you have to have experience and skin in the game.

I already require a security deposit so the tenant has some skin in the game.Any ideas for how landlords in this situation protect themselves?  

I do not invest in Vermont, so I have no skin-in-the-game per se, but I would point out, that what you're requesting will need two different types of loans.