What different outcomes might result from various regulatory decisions?

Strategize with your attorney to ask for a compensatory discount, at the appropriate time, to prevent you from filing a lawsuit seeking damages from a jury trial (and perhaps reporting this to the FTC and other regulatory lending authorities). 

Is the mere use of GIUC in forums, blogs, or wherever sufficient cause for any level of scrutiny from big broth....I mean the Justice Dept. or regulatory agencies ?

That election as to the type of business you are can change by default when more than half of the income is derived from another or when you spend a significant amount of time in another business classification.A regulatory agency may look to the IRS Code as a basis to determine if activities are accomplished as a business venture, but they are not required to as they may base their opinion on many other aspects, such as the population activity, are you dealing with three people or 30 or 300?

All states have regulatory finance agencies that will have oversight.  

I don't know how concerned the RE regulatory body would be as they are mostly concerned with agents.

Of course there was a cost of doing business in this manner, as the broker had to get paid (either buy you or the lender or both - back in the post crash days.)In the post Dodd-Frank increased regulatory environment of lending today, the advantages are not as great using a broker as they used to be. 

When in doubt, call the regulatory agency.

You would have to go to the city, county, state and sometimes even federal regulatory agencies that govern and regulate the particular property you are interested in.

There are ways that a lease with option can be accomplished (though I would no longer do one in this regulatory climate) but you must make sure the lease and the option are separate.