The cleaning costs alone were over $9k.

At the end of the day, you won't make a pile of money, it will cost the developer more money than if they were just reasonable, and only the lawyers will be happy. 

We are looking towards STRs in order to lower our W-2 taxable income via cost seg and bonus depreciation.I believe my line of work qualifies me as a REP, but what I am not clear on is whether I would still need to meet the 'material participation' requirements in our rental business in order for our losses to be non-passive.

Also factor in if the rents jumped a lot and if that would lead to a vacancy, which will cost you more in the short term. 

I have been in Milwaukee WI for quite a while as investing in my backyard in NY is cost prohibitive. good luck on your journey!!!! 

We moved to Mexico to lower our monthly cost.

The easiest way to find and connect with wholesalers is either bigger pockets or by googling "sell my house fast in (town name)" although that may cost them a click for google ads.

The overhead to start a company is low, but the cost to scale is high. 

Connecting with experienced investors or joining local real estate groups can provide valuable insights and help you avoid costly mistakes.

I feel like there's still people trying to make BRRRR deals work close to the city and the truth is it's nearly impossible given prices, rates, and the cost of construction.