If the tenant fails to perform, the landlord can terminate the agreement and keep the deposit as damages and move on finding another tenantIf you accept a security deposit and /or execute a lease for a future date and the tenant fails to perform at move in, your only option is to evict as there is a lease in place.

A smaller house on the same block sold for $106k, other sales range between $65k-$85k. 

I went to brelion.com and signed up however they block access until they verify accreditation status and claim it could take up to 21 days.

You now have credit for unexpected expenses that you may not have the cash for such as roof damage, hvac replacement, leaks etc. 

Evictions not only cost a lot of money to do, but you can have months of lost rent and property damages to deal with also.  

Talking about the 80's makes me think you've been around the block, but where is your BS Meter?

I've read that lenders won't include STR income, therefore I could be blocking myself out.6.  

The outside has completely no siding on it and some of the wood looks damaged so it would need to be fixed.

Considering the next step down on 90% of renters insurance policies is $100,000 they are just trying to make sure all of your expenses are covered in the event they are liable for the damage to your property.  

Granted I know you are not hitting specific target homes but what if your piece went to every home on multiple blocks in target area and it hits some target homes but also hits homes that open channels to target homes.