I'm finishing renovations on a studio apartment (under another unit in a multi-family) in the next few days and am trying to decide on what strategy to use to rent it.

to the OP, i hope airbnb never decides to ban you from their network.  

Understanding the law can help you decide what strategy you will use for wholesaling.

I'm a STR owner / manager located in Texas (Bryan /College Station, TX specifically.) 

Decided on Belize. 

For example I know many who are now just lending because they are getting 10-12% short term which is far better than any cap rate on real estate. you do not have the equity upside as you do real estate but its a way to play the short game to see what happens over the next 12-24 months and decide when you want to buy.

I could be wrong but I thought I saw that Sacramento requires primary residence for the owner for STR.Do you live in Sacramento or nearby ?

Hoping that someone could provide some guidance on this so I can decide how to proceed?

I wouldn't go into it with any preconceived notions of what the owner's intentions, situation or motivation may be.

Tenants tend to be harder on the home than owners.