I'm looking to apply my sales skills as a Note Broker, but I am trying to figure out if direct note brokering is a legitimate part of the industry, or if it's just a hack presented by "gurus". 

Before that I want to know if the PM can hold my rent/security if I file a complaint.Additionally is there any other venue where I can lodge a formal complaint?

If there is a legitimate profit to be made in the situation, lenders will lend, even during a recession. 

It is a legitimate business expense.  

The other is that any sort of offline payment, pre-payment, or in at least one case I can remember, a legitimate habitability issue that led to a tenant not paying rent one month led to a gap in that tenant's reported rent payment history.

I have an awesome house, not on the beach (by choice) but close enough plus walking distance to the walking bridge into the city as well as wedding venues, restaurants and bars and all the tourist attractions.

They are willing to fund any legitimate deal we find.

Don’t get me wrong, some of the reasons for not buying were legitimate, but some were not.As a buyer and a seller, I see both sides of the coin.

For my first rental My llc did a resolution to allow me to hold the security deposit in a personal account set up for that purpose for the legitimate business reason of avoiding bank service charges.

Sounds like it could be legitimate advice IF your Realtor knows anything about construction (i.e. if it's installed incorrectly, what else is wrong?