Doing some rehab is generally one of the more common ways to do so.One other item to add, when analyzing a property in a hot market, looking at cash flow and cash-on-cash return alone doesn't give you a good picture.

I was pretty certain that I have to disclose to my new tenants before lease signing that I am a licensed realtor.. which brought up the question of is there a general form commonly used for this?  

This is very common in the banking industry.   

Is this common for waterfront land pricing?

Most hard money lenders seem to have common practices and will generally require a down payment, however private money lenders can make their own rules.

The sob stories are a very common theme in the biz.

If a common rate in my area is 2.4% for buyers agents I may even offer 2.5-3% just to stand out a little more.

There should be a big gap between the two commonly called profit.

@Inahya Browne If it's common in your market to use them, then you could ask the buyer to sign one with you.  

It's very common for real estate agents to contact sellers after a listing expires or is canceled.