I've seen a lot of people get so hung up in procedural things that they never get out and complete a deal.

Just figured they could tell em anything, just to take my money. .Just wanted to see if that was normal procedure.

Changing the locks is bad advice and probably illegal like here in Texas unless certain procedures are followed...which include leaving notice where the tenant can get a key.

Assuming you have pissedsionrights....you legally either need to evict or get an ejectment order, depending on your state/local procedures. 

you do need the originals to foreclose.. the DT or Mortgage of course is recorded but the note is not. so they want the original in hand before they fund.now when I was in my hey day of HML in 12 states there was different procedures in each state but it was our money so we could determine what we did.  

Do all other screening services now follow this procedure or is it just TVS?

If to a commercial lender, then you should know their underwriting procedure, what kind of loan business the lender is in, amount of new loans created last quarter, etc.

I see them leading a lot of unsophisticated newbies down a tragic path because they aren't telling them the whole truth & proper operating procedures to be in compliance.

Days to close can be a little longer than conforming loans, depending on the USDA region, though some new underwriting procedures being rolled out may help with that. 

Remember, they are large companies and typically bureaucratic, policy and procedure driven.