You're planning to operate this as a STR/MTR.

As an owner-operator you will be able to screen tenants a little more carefully than a PM typically does in my experience. 

Find GP’s who are pretty transparent with things like monthly financials, monthly summaries of operations, etc.

Converting debt to equity if allowed by the operating agreement is not indicative of a Ponzi Scheme.  

I’m also not a fan of buying a property that loses money every month, while hoping for appreciation and betting that interest rates will fall.

We operate primarily in the Southwestern US and New England area.

It's hard to say for sure without knowing your market numbers, but I would bet you if you looked at a 10 year projection, you will probably have a better ROI with the equity in 2 houses as opposed to the equity and cash flow with one. 

Like aircraft checklists and vehicle operators manuals (the -10s), one can benefit from extensive research, trial and error, and deliberate improvement principles gained by the many that have gone the path before. 

We've also launched a gourmet mushroom grow operation and plant nursery.

Hey @Jon Pflueger - your best bet will be to retain an architect, they typically have a good understanding of what's feasible and not in a specific zoning/area + will know how to handle variance permissions and etc.