I can say that self-managing a STR from afar is beyond me (no experience as a property manager) so that would eat into cash flow. 

We also have HELOC's and HELOAN's on investment properties as well, even using bank statements as income, if self employed too.If you'd like to explore your best options, let's talk for a few minutes to determine the best rate and payment strategies.ThanksCraig

I did not do this and was muddling through self taught Quickbooks for years.

I have three STR properties that my wife and I have self-managed but from a tax perspective we've only taken the normal depreciation the last few tax years.

Look into a DSCR loan that uses the property's cashflow instead of your personal income to qualify.This is a tax free move as you are using debt plus you still benefit from all the benefits of still owning the first house.Your future self will thank you for stacking houses this way as your cashflow and equity will build up over time creating long-term wealth.To Your Success!

Then you can usually eke out a small profit on the rental income if you self manage and pull your money back out so you can scale with that. 

Depending on your business you also want to keep in mind that some of those funds you take out of that business might need to be used for taxes as self-employment taxes typically don't go away by investing in real estate.

Btw, right now I'm still using a self-built Excel spreadsheet that works just fine for me.

I'm not against suggesting that you pay a PM a little extra for an hour of their time to tell you about the local housing authority, even if you don't plan to self manage or don't plan to use them. 

What if I use self-direct traditional IRA, instead?