As for buying your first rental you can say it will be your new primary residence to take advantage of the 3.5% FHA or 5% conventional.

I would say conventional / FHA (bank loans) would be your best option.

Near Centerville/Kettering you can find some great A/B class properties with good tenants.In terms of cash vs financing, if one of you is a US citizen, you can still qualify for a conventional loan with your current income.

If you are self-employed, there are specific loan programs designed for self-employed persons as opposed to conventional W-2 financing. 

We can offer both in house private money for bridge loans/fix n flips as well as all your other investor loans including DSCR, Conventional, Non-QM, and Commercial. 

Conventional loan at 5% down since it was a primary residence, but being the agent, after getting paid commission and seller concessions, I only had to come with about $10,000 of my own money on a $485k property.

The loan on my current house is actually a conventional loan. 37,834/year projects me 3152/month before airbnb/cleaning fees right?

Many of the homes and condo complexes are near wildfire areas in California and the buyer is unable to qualify for conventional financing with Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loans because many insurance companies won't cover the property.

Do you have a VA or conventional loan?  

STR (if more than 50/100 miles from your home, or at a destination like lake house or beach house), allows you to put 10% down vs 15/20% down for conventional financing.