Then I would shoot for areas that appreciate the most, because when leveraging the 5% down.. appreciation will bring you the most profits. 

Can you handle all that if you have to eat from those profits?

Making a decent profit has everything to do with the right market...each and every one is different in guest avatar, ADR, and yearly revenue...the property itself, and the host and how knowledgeable they are on the STR industry right now because that is also an ever-changing landscape!  

Say you profit $200/month and you have a $20k HELOC. 100+ months to pay it off - not a good idea. 

It's much more profitable for you grasp at straws and pretend the business model doesn't suck so you can sell your SEO program.Get that money bro.

Have you thought about the types of properties you want to invest in and the strategy you want to use to make a profit via said property?

Make sure your first property has no long-term cap ex coming like roofs, furnaces, sewer, etc so you know you won't get a 10k bill when you buy another one and lose profit on all across the board.

The Roth IRA and his money partner agreed to split the profits 50/50.

This guidance is essential in a market where not every property will yield profitable results.Furthermore, having a reputable lending partner can enhance an investor's credibility with sellers and real estate agents.

Values drop, sometimes drastically, rents go down as quality of tenant declines; cost of operstimg properties increase, and governmental interference, especially in the form of rent control, can slash values and profitability severely.