The rental had ratty furniture, a record player prominently featured in the marketing but it had no speakers, missing basics items in the kitchen, lots of drunks in the concrete hallways that reverberated right into the bedroom at 2am, a strong odor of urine outside, and more.We have super hosts in this forum that have hundreds of 5-star reviews and are masters of the craft, but I look at their rentals and see they don't have any artwork on the walls, decor is basic, they do nothing to make the guest feel welcome, etc. 

Which I also would tell you that if you have trouble managing finances and poor credit I strongly advise against real estate as its capital intensive and if you struggle now managing money having more money and real estate only exacerbates that issue.

Congrats on your first STR in Sevierville—sounds like a strong start!

Research landlord-friendly states with lower property prices and strong rental demand, like Texas or the Midwest.

I'm in Birmingham, and currently working with clients in Israel.

I've been doing this for almost 15 years in NJ  and the Client pipeline is the toughest part.  

We could not do this without the trust of our clients and referral partners.

However what my client's look for is any eviction action.  

Had a newbie client that bought 5 SFR rentals and called us 3-5 times daily.

It’s also important to be as specific as possible in the scope of work for each line item—clear details can save you from misunderstandings or unexpected costs later on.I specialize in consulting services for situations just like this, helping clients work confidently with contractors by bridging the knowledge gap.