There are specific requirements dealing with fire protection, fire resistant construction (fire walls, etc), egress, and other things. 

I just became aware of a situation where a family friend and her mother have offered to short sale their home with no regard to loss of their initial $20K down payment and damage on their credit due to the fact that they're up in age (one is over 100 years old) and they see no other recourse.How can I advise them of a different strategy to resist the temptation to give away what is essentially a really nice home that needs minimal TLC in the Oviedo FL area?

Alright, a personal ask from @Brandon Turner was too much for me to resist.

The banks here we deal with have "resistance" (meaning decision makers become 'non-local') at $500,000 and $1M.

For finishes not high end but resistant to damage.

Persistence breaks resistance!  

You will find resistance with any FHA, Fannie or Freddie -backed property held in an entity.  

@Adrian TilleyI resisted the temptation to change your mailing address to mine. 

Also, I will say the only thing I know about Mebane is you have an Allen Edmonds outlet that I can't resist driving 2 hours for every few months.

Of course there are general business and success books that will be helpful too and I would put them in the General Motivation category.Motivation /general/ business*E myth Resisted - Michael Gerber, way overrated in my opinion.