Quote from @Corey Gilroy:
I'm looking into buying a property to mid term rent in the northern VA region. Right next to the pentagon. What resources are out there to start reading about on how to operate them? Find tenants? What size units work best?
Going to explore the forums after posting this but any books, podcasts or people that you would recommend to guide my research would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Sounds like you won't be househacking, MTR should be safe in Arlington but you'll probably want to avoid STR since you'd be in violation of the county's regulations.
I'd recommend Sean Rakidzich on YouTube. His old content is gold for understanding how to run STR/MTR. We find our tenants on Airbnb and VRBO. We've yet to try FurnishedFinder but have heard it recommended.
A buddy who cohosts in Arlington has a duplex and each is a 2/1, if I recall correctly, about 1,000sqft. They do pretty well, but since they're in an area that's not walkable and not by a metro, their momentum is a bit slow. We operate a tiny Airbnb MTR in Alexandria by the metro and it gets good bookings due to location.
I've heard of other podcasts, but I'd recommend Sean's early content above anyone else when getting started. He provides lots of tips that can be implemented rather than inspirational data. I'd also recommend digging into Airbnb comps and reviewing listings for inspiration, weaknesses, and opportunities.