The creative strategies you use have to be tailored to reach your goals while minimizing those downsides and risks.

Tell them that they are on the hook for rent until you find a suitable tenant and they need to make the home available for showings (you will try to minimize them and group them together). 

@Andrew Pettit school doesnt guarantee any success but minimizes probability of failure in life .

Also renting I aim for location to attract best tenants and minimize repairs. 

To minimize fluff or incidental mark ups, ask directly, What are you concerned will dirve up your costs?

You could get lucky and find something that needs minimal work.

If you have (access to cheap) financing to double close, and stage the house before selling you could make nice little profit with minimal work...

So your cost is minimal - paper, ink, envelope and stamp.

Minimizing losses - yes, selling for close to nothing - rarely if ever.

Hope that everything goes smoothly with "minimal" to no hitches on Monday.