He tried to punch his way thru their basement window, got cut up badly, and came over to our house and bled all over the back porch and pounded on the door hollering. 

You can say you're a cash buyer all day long, but if you want that safety net of being able to walk away from the contract if you get denied, then you wouldn't be a cash buyer.

If someone screws me over on a real estate transaction due to misrepresentation or withholding pertinent information; someone will make the transaction right (broken knees, cut off digits, cut off ear or nose, cut off testicles is the last option)

I wasn't really concerned because I know what I'm doing, I do things right and don't cut corners.

Time is your most precious non-renewable asset... cut to the chase on what you exactly expect from them and if they choose not to work with you, it's best for you and your business to know that now!  

Would they have mandated rent cuts?

The older door edges and door jambs might need to be scrapped. 

Do not worry about the commission cut or anything quite yet because it will take a little while before you make your first sale (most of the time).

I would like to raise my income on the non-real estate business, but want to have the REP tax status first to cut down on fed income tax. 

According to the Pennsylvania Landlord Tenant Act of 1951, Section 250.201:Real property, including any personal property thereon, may be leased for a term of not more than three years by a landlord or his agent to a tenant or his agent, by oral or written contract or agreement.Source: https://casetext.com/statute/pennsylvania-statutes/statutes-unconsolidated/title-68-ps-real-and-personal-property/chapter-8-landlord-and-tenant/landlord-and-tenant-act-of-1951/article-ii-creation-of-leases-statute-of-frauds-mortgaging-of-leaseholds/section-250201-leases-for-not-more-than-three-yearsI’d consult with a local landlord-tenant attorney in your state and confirm, but it seems pretty clear cut.