If we do need to move on, any recommendations for a reputable property manager?

If the economic reality indicates that a sale has taken place and the benefits and burdens of ownership of the land have been transferred, the transaction will be treated as a sale, resulting in immediate tax consequences (i.e. gain on the transaction will have to be reported right away).If the true option exists, For the seller, the main tax benefit is that you receive the amount paid for the option without incurring income tax at that time.

Will there be legal consequences to how I handled the below situation?

That said, your best protection is to only work with reputable wholesalers, ideally ones who have done deals like this before.

I look for places with a favorable renter-to-owner ratios, low crime rates, good schools, etc. 3) Hire a realtor or locate a wholesaler with a good reputation.

I suspect the consequences of being called on your bluff are greater than you want, and that you would be handing lots of power to the tenant.

For me personally, I'd rather work with a local lender who's capable of closing in 14 days or less and that has a reputation for closing on time (or early) even if it costs me a fractionally higher rate. 

Your handyman has a reputation to uphold so his references hopefully hold water.

If Austin doesn't go full left-wing-permissive-seattle-style and ensures those services have conditions and boundaries, so that they don't get the "Freeattle" reputation then the shelter won't draw an outsized proportion of people from all over who just want handouts,  instead it will be more likely to draw people from Austin actually looking to turn things around.   

This is especially since you also mentioned something about living abroad, and international tax and law are pretty complex that a typical CPA may not be well versed in international consequences.