They are hoping that tenant will leave so they can stick you with more fees to make the unit "rent ready" and generate a fresh new set of re-lease fees. 

(this house was a fresh remodel 12 months ago).

I know it sounds terrible but my borrower also got a big payout and was thrilled with the fresh start so it was a win-win!  

He is legally obligated to hold your information in confidence and not to reveal it in the future.  

It's a little hard to be a hard a$$ when your tenant is also your neighbor.The answer to that is to hire a property manager and never reveal that you are actually the landlord.

I was dialing a fresh list this week and and had a contact ratio of 14%, with a true contact % of 45% on a 6 ring dialer.However these numbers are not scrubbed against the DNC, so that is something you might have to look into with a 3rd party vendor. 

When you say nothing major do you mean nothing structural or is it just fresh paint and carpets.

Higher end will expect smooth walls; lower end will accept clean and fresh (painting will accomplish this).See what the competition does in your area.

Does checking with recorders office reveal everything on the title?

Yes a fresh collection will hurt her score pretty good.Also you have to figure in the loss she will have in borrowing cost now that her score is lower her rates will go up.Some credit cards and other credit state if a score falls below a certain amount or other accounts go bad they can change interest rates etc.