Where to Invest STR or long term....preferably a vacation rental

[Matthew Swearingen]

I live in Roseville CA and recently bought my first income property. I put 20% down and the rent covers the mortgage. I bought it for the long term equity appreciation. In the next couple of years I can probably make a couple hundred, but again my plan is to have home paid off in 15 years. At which point I'm estimating rents would be $3500-$4500/month. 

I was thinking of buying another in my area as the growth and increase in value is great for this area, but I was looking at a condo in St. Thomas VI. After cost of mortgage and HOA fees etc, it would not cash flow. I had looked about a year ago at Tulum but decided to hold off.

So where is the next place to invest in STR whether it be here in the states or abroad? I have 50K in savings. I make about 120K a year, credit is good, I only have my primary residence mortgage with about $300k equity. Realistically, I can set aside 5K per month. That's 60K/year. Am I looking at flips and if so what areas?

With interest rates up to almost 7% and putting 20% down it seems that the numbers dont work at this point.....or do they?

Any suggestions or insight would be helpful.

Matthew