You may already have though about these aspects, but from personal experiecne, here are my 2 cents..Maximize Tax Benefits: One of the major perks of house hacking is the tax advantages.

I thought I could capture all of the tax saving benefits of cost segregation and the tax benefits that come from my LLC.

This could have three fold impact ---> allow for writing off paper losses against W2 income, increase the property value by increasing monthly rent, and all the normal cash flow benefits for RE...right?

There are many benefits associated with a 721 Exchange.

That being said, there are some significant benefits to building versus buying and rehabbing.1) If you're building, you should be able to come in at 80% LTV or better assuming you're acting as the GC. 

With the luck of the market, I benefited and realized that real estate is what I would like to do long term.

The investor must consider whether the potential property value increase or other benefits outweigh this loss.

I'd give the current PMC the benefit of the doubt and assume they are just trying to do this by the books as opposed to dragging their feet, but otherwise agree with @Theresa Harris.

Lots of people acquired their RE license during this period as it was a unique market that they thought could leverage to benefit them financially.

(My assumption is it may be tough to prove enough material participation if using someone local to manage.)Two things worth noting:1- I'll be discussing with my CPA in-depth soon, but would like to hear other's experiences on this.2 - The main reasons I'm looking to STR's is the tax benefits (Cost-Seg) & appreciation that comes with buying in these areas opposed to the mid-west where I look for long-term rentals..