And always check social media for red flags and I agree with Vince, always meet a person.  

Just my personal opinion - get a mentor or a person who already has good experience running STR business, preferably in your area (but not 100% required). 

I have known and worked with Matt for years.I have attended his training and hired him as a consultant.He is hands down the best at what he does.I have personally raised over $50 million for my hard money lending company.I am grateful for a lot of people who helping me with this success and Matt is at or near the top of that list.

I'm going to exclude my personal residence from this because I don't view this as an investment, I need a place to live.Excluding my primary residence my current breakdown is 47% real estate 53% stocks/cash. 

We make people take photos of themselves holding their ID and then I also meet them in person for the showing - at least for my units on the NW side of Chicago.I've never heard of these testers, but I am not surprised. 

Explore my personal favorites, Set For Life by Scott Trench or The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, for invaluable financial insights.3.

Avoiding accessive PM fees (personally I recommend most people self-manage)These will eat away at your ROI.

Perhaps there is a relevant book or podcast that you could suggest to expand my knowledge in this area.Considering you're experience with creative finance deals, which you mentioned previously, I am keen to hear about your personal insights and experiences.

I'm never going to use your website because I already have personal relationships with people doing that work.

I love talking personal finance and real estate investing so I would be happy to help.