Trying to decide next move

[Nicholas Carlson]

I bought an apartment for about 150k in Staten Island NYC about 4-5 years ago that I spent very little money renovating myself and now thru appreciation is worth about 250k mortgage free. I am single and have a steady 9-5 job earning me about 3k a week after taxes and also have about another 40k in savings at the moment. I am trying to figure out my next move and am very undecided, but my goal is financial independence.

So with about $300k total in funds, I am trying to decide between buying long term rental properties out of state, buying another property to renovate, or buying a property to rent short term (airbnb). I have a lot of home repair skills/renovation experience and am confident I could be successful doing another flip, however I'm very intrigued by the possibility of passive income thru rentals (fully acknowledging the potential headaches).

What would you wise people recommend?