Real estate agents make money purely off of their knowledge and information and network.

Pure honesty!!

After hiring an attorney and tracking down the original developer (which was pure luck) who wrote the covenants, we were able to get an affidavit from him stating that his intent was in fact to permit short term rentals.

That’s my pure strategy tbh.

So, I basically would have to find a home that is in need of purely cosmetic renovations at a really low price to actually make a profit.

Save the custom build until you're older and have lived in a few places.Look for a MFR (I think 3- or 4-unit properties are way better than duplexes), live there a few years, and then turn it into a pure investment property.

“Who” can most easily absorb a financial hit is purely subjective and isn’t relevant.Home owners certainly “should” have reserves for financial catastrophes like ones that I have endured.  

Are you going to be owner occupying the property, or is this purely for investment?

It's purely a "capacity to process applications" issue.My crystal ball is broken, however... 

The pure "vacation based" airbnbs are probably going to be some of the first to feel the impact.