It is probably someone frustrated at their own struggles, so they chose to take aim at a newbie for sport.

I have a Master's degree in Sports Management so there is a little MBA action in there, but school and real life are absolutely NOT the same thing.

That said, in many circumstances it might help. it's a gamble at best imoI also assume this is for a retail primary home, if it's for an investment house then I really hate this idea.

I gambled on the cheap solution and lost.

I haven't gone all out and really dissected a lot of states to potentially invest in, but since Vegas is close, rated #1 for growth as per Realtor.com and now has 2 professional sports teams, I figure the upside is still in tact.I'm looking for guidance on what zip codes I should focus on for SFR and MF either for the BRRRR strategy or turnkey for cashflow. 

You can take that money out and spend it on a sports car (company sports car of course) or you can purchase more real estate. 

Thereafter, I’d like to focus on my Sports Agency business and continue building wealth - perhaps progress to commercial deals!

If I give a free month as incentive I am guaranteed the lose of $3500, if I take the gamble and not collect the deposit, I’m hedging my bet that the tenant wont trash the place, and therefore less likely to lose $3500 bucks. 

I took the gamble and got it 101k and made it work for me.

I can see that you are a biker, and cycling is a sport where its all about consistency.