She said just to send all the paperwork and calls to the insurance company and let them handle it.I contacted the lawyer, advised him to send all correspondence and make phone calls to the insurance company.

Most major metros can handle MTR only and STR only--- it's a strategy discussion.

Just be sure you can handle the negative cash flow for now and have a strategy to improve it later, like refinancing or increasing rent.

I mean, it's your property......At least that's how I always handled it....

How should I handle this?

If I purchase a short-term rental property and hire a property manager to handle its management, would the income be considered passive under my visa status?

I couple weeks ago I talked to an agent selling a VA foreclosure in Southern California and he said their last sale was handled by New American Financing but he didn't have a whole lot of info other than that.  

I would ensure you have enough saved in reserves to handle down months, furnishing and decorating the entire house, closing costs, etc.

How would you all handle this?

Here in PA anyone can write up a contract and submit it to a title company and they will handle everything.