STR Owners in Nashville, what has your experience been like?

[Hollie Parrish]

I'm a Nashville resident, and I'm hoping to buy my first home and house hack in the next year or so. I'm open to both long term and short term rentals, but am leaning short term rental because it seems more lucrative. Ideally, I would buy either a multi-family home or a single family home that could easily be hacked for STR (has a basement, etc.). I have some cash and also have a relative who is interested in investing with me. However, my resources are somewhat limited, so I am looking for something around $400k or lower. I know the 400k budget is limiting in Nashville, but I am not picky about where I live or what the house looks like, as long as I can make the numbers work.

I'd love to connect with someone who has undergone this process before or has some experience with STR or LTR in Nashville. I am a little confused as to which neighborhoods I should zero in on, what I can charge for rent (airbnb or otherwise), anticipated vacancy rate, etc. Because I live in Nashville, I have a general idea as to which neighborhoods would be attractive to renters, but am overwhelmed. Also, how do I find renter data (vacancy/prices to charge)? I know Zillow and similar sites can be used for LTR info and I imagine there are airbnb data sites, but am curious as to what people use re: data.