With respect to the asset protection, purchase your real estate in an LLC in the state where you live or the state where the property is located.

Any recommendations with communications  (both with guests and the their respective booking platforms) and handling current upcoming bookings? 

Different companies have different fee schedules...with checkbook control, it's generally more to establish and less over time...do your homework and decide which is best for you.   

Most likely I'll be establishing an LLC.

Plus, the seasoning of the company can make it easier to secure better credit terms or refinance quickly since lenders often view established entities more favorably.One of the biggest advantages, though, is the flexibility in negotiating the down payment.

This is important because GOOD hosts know that good and reliable cleaners and handyman can be hard to find, so they treat their cleaners and handyman lke GOLD, which includes referring business to them, paying them quickly and promptly, respecting their time, and taking care of them on the holidays.   

To make sure the investment satisfies your financial objectives, establish your target profit margin.Decide how much money is needed overall for the transaction.

the answer is because this is what professionals do and it's the price of admission to really establish your real estate business properly from the outset.Having a lien, loan, etc. on the property does not indicate personal liability exposure to real property because being the borrower on a loan does not equate to holding legal title on the underlying property. 

We did a commercial loan, 20% down (10% down each)-I leveraged my partner's relationship with his commercial lenders to establish a baseline of credibility for myself and cut my teeth doing my first deal.

Finding an established group that finds a way to get deals done tends to be as helpful as anything as many of us have had experiences of weird and seemingly unnecessary denials.I do like to make sure that its a region they lend to and the type of project that they do.