I let them rescind the deal, and went back to my old habit of checking out the sellers completely, financially and character wise.

If you do as they say, not only will it secure your being paid for January and February, it will also help you get the unit habitable again for the sale.Instead of a fixed-term lease, you can go month-to-month if you can't get everything in place in time to end the tenancy by the end of February.

Home inspectors must have terrible sleep habits.

I'm curious because they are new tenants, but I don't want this to start becoming a habit.

I always make a habit (leftover from my broker day) to over disclose vs under disclose.  

Many books on how habits are formed or altered (Ex: The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg) discuss how we can use multiple resources to kick ourselves into learning something new and sticking to it.Additionally, I think the term "guru" is warped.

I can see you needing a residential policy at first, then a builders risk during the renovation and once the 4 unit is done and the property is officially a mixed use commercial building then you will need a habitational/mixed use commercial policy.

Using equity to wipe out debt does not get you in the right habits.

Regarding #3, you can't change that, humans are creatures of habits.

There you will find people to network with such as local investors, wholesalers, flippers and more importantly to me a mentor/coach, which I believe is a vital key to success in this market.