We signed a contract to purchase a propery from a turnkey company.

If you're only looking to invest in your market then you can always pay your properties down and perhaps put aside money for a down payment as well in the event a too-good-to-be-true deal appears so you readily have the funds to get it under contract/put 20% down.

I really cannot speak to other investors' reasons for contracting homes and backing out, but I would think it has more to do with the condition of the home rather than the laws.If you're looking to buy and hold, you need to know that there are some areas of the south side that won't expect to appreciate but WILL cash flow a good bit, and there are other areas that are currently growing tremendously but won't necessarily cash flow as much.Are you looking to buy in this area?

If you get a god deal in a good location will probably have a contract the next day. 

I am under contract on a single family home in Brookhaven that I'm looking to convert into a 4/2 by adding 2 bedrooms to the back and converting a half bath into a full bath by adding a shower.

ME and my team are just in contract with apartment building in Kansas City, MO.

If a borrower has sufficient income to service the debt at contract rate, but not the funds to reinstate the loan in full, one may still be eligible for a mod that just capitalizes delinquent interest and starts the borrower over.

I've got a couple duplexes over near 185th with another under contract.

I'm in the process of listing a home for my aunt in Michigan and there is a clause on the contract that the seller's agent gets 50% of the earnest money deposit if the buyer backs out without cause. 

Such a partnership sounds worthy of launching a formal contract to define non-performance and to make their promised reimbursement policy enforceable.