You should have a good idea of every expense you have in your primary home, then add the STR specific:  (These are rough estimate numbers, depending on various factors)STR insurance - a special insurance that covers both the property and your liability, could be $2~4k in areas without natural disasters, could be more than $10k in some other areas.cleaning fee - approx. $50 per bedroom, so a 4-bedroom house will cost you about $150~200consumables - bathroom supplies, kitchen supplies, beverage supplies: $20~30 per week, depending on how much you providewear and tear - towels, linen, kitchen utensils, some furniture: $1000~2000 per yearRepairs/replacement for things that guests break or steal:  $1000~2000 per yearAlso, if your personal use is less than 14 days a year, the entire property's expense is deductible against STR income, but if you use more than 14 days, then you will have to calculate the proportion of how many days it's rented out vs how many days you or your family uses. 

Human nature is fallible and any business that exists out there is run by humans.

There are many more and many more personal goals such as getting married and starting a family, adopting my first GSP dog, traveling to Wyoming and Montana and spending more time in nature, just to share a few.

. - Many areas around the country allow for ADU Construction - house-hackers enjoy similar benefits to remodeling projects by being naturally on-site for ADU construction. 

Urban Development land swaps are often used as a strategy to: - Consolidate public land holdings - Acquire important natural or recreational areas - Facilitate development while ensuring community benefitsLand swaps can provide several benefits to communities: - Preservation of open spaces and environmentally sensitive areas - Creation of new public parks or recreational facilities - Protection of wildlife habitats and corridors - Improved land management efficiencyI searched for some Urban examples for reference: 1.

Any comment made about a positive experience with him has been from an account with little to no information in it, or of some other suspicious nature.

You just need someone who understands the "block-by-block" nature of the city and surrounding areas.

Naturally your property must sell before you can take title to the new one, but nothing prevents you from getting it under contract and make the process as smooth as possible.  

Prices a few years ago were based on expectations of (in addition to interest rates staying low): - Then current operating cost assumptions (like insurance cost expectations being flat)- A seeming disregard for record levels of new inventory / supply hitting the market- Extremely high inbound migration expectations which are likely to not be met, due to both natural disasters and the boomerang effect when people from California or the Northeast move to the American South and hate every minute of the humidity, the large and relentless swarm of insects, and the occasional hurricane. 

Licensed contractors have more of their "shtuff" together and thus are better at their job and naturally will cost more.