STR in Bentonville, AR how feasible?

[Shawn Mayhew]

Hello BiggerPockets, 

Ive been looking to purchase my first investment property in Bentonville, AR. My wife and I travel here often mainly for mountain biking and have noticed the growth potential. I've been following the Bentonville home prices for a year now and finally am in the position to purchase my first property. My question is, after running numbers on multiple properties utilizing Airdna data and running my own calculations from Airbnb and VRBO, is investing in downtown Bentonville feasible or worth it? Most homes near the downtown square average $400 per square foot; at that price with today's interest rates utilizing the data most potential properties only break even with a 0% cash-on-cash return using the property as a STR. With potential STR regulations, would purchasing a deal at breaking even be worth it for appreciation alone? Currently under contract for a property that was appraised for over 125k than the agreed purchase price.

Thanks for the insight.