Despite what seems like a stretch of the abandonment argument from my lens. 

Food for thought - you'll also want to consider your tax strategy and reported income through the lens of your future plans.

Look at your property through the lens of a tenant.

I will be self managing.I'm trying to gain an accurate lens.

The goal is to show that you are not making money in the lens of the IRS, but also making sure that you can + cashflow in the lending world.

The goal is to show that you are not making money in the lens of the IRS, but also making sure that you can + cashflow in the lending world. 

@Len Miller, Just like @Alex Olson said, any type of investment real estate can be exchanged for any other type of investment real estate. 

I would try to view the problem over a longer term lens.

It sounds like most people on this thread are viewing the issue of a non-refundable deposit from the lens of the buyer.

I read this post by Andrew Postell, so I'm aware of the basic differences re self sufficient/funding fee/MPI/etc -- but I wonder if there is another lens to view these loans through when there's a team of investors considering them.