Purchase Luxury STR or multiple mid level STR

[John Rankin]

I would like to hear opinions of experienced investors on what type of STR would be best to purchase going forward. I am about to purchase my first and/or second STR property in the Southeast. With the market changing and housing being expensive would you recommend purchasing one higher end luxury property around $700k or two mid level properties around $300-$350k? Running the numbers on a few properties they both have good COC and CapRates but the mid level properties are not as exciting or alluring as the nicer property (obviously).

I am having a hard time finding any worthy turnkey $300k properties that will allure to the public and am worried that the mid range may not cashflow in the long run as much, however it is a lower cost so my liabilities will not be as much. There seem to be more options for the $650k + properties but I won't be able to purchase multiple as my cash will be tied up for a longer period. Listening to podcasts it sounds like a lot of people are focusing on higher end but wanted to get opinions if that would be wise for my first STR.

My goals are to own 3-5 STR in the next 2 years and then transition into some LTR as well as Mulitfamily and want to know the best pathway to get there. Hope that makes sense, sorry for the long winded wording. Any input would be appreciated.