I'm having a heck of a time just getting the code department to do their job on a flip, and it's burning some major pocket holes. 

@Lisa Connor it sounds like you're trying to fit a square peg in a round hole - and then getting frustrated it's not working!

But they also have crews to keep busy, etc, so sometimes they won't grind on price as much if they have a hole in their business plan. 

Hi Olga,Speak with an Asset Protection Attorney that understands real estate, and then go back to your Tax person and get a cost estimate to handle the accounting for it.Winging it yourself might leave some easily exploitable holes in your protection.Good Luck!

The value I added was giving him a lifeline and pulling him out of the financial hole he had dug.

If closing gets delayed, you could be in a deeper and deeper hole. 

I like to bury them approximately 12" deep and terminate them in a lawn box, which is essentially a pipe/bucket that sits underground with some holes in the bottom and/or sides that the water drains out of.

Can one find loop-holes to argue against, sure, but at what cost?

I didn't like it and kicked a hole in the wall.  

A guarantor or a Co-signor either one is a loop hole for a tenant to leave on less than desirable terms and pass their responsibilities to another, which may or may not hurt a case in small claims.