There are tons of beginner friendly hard money investors on here that will lend to a first time flipper, although it may be a higher rate, their expertise will be invaluable. 

Work with an investor-friendly agent, explore up-and-coming neighborhoods, and consider value-add opportunities.

When you are investor friendly it means you understand the metrics of the buyers property search.I have seen so many agents get comfortable and simply add their new buyers to the "Hot Sheet" and they blast the buyers with properties that do not even fit the buyers cash flow needs or budget.

Clean, friendly, activity rich and lots of employment driving growth as far as I found. 

However, with the frequent incidents and the persistent odor, even after cleaning, I’m beginning to wonder if this has become the norm for STRs in urban areas.Any advice or tips on how to prevent this would be greatly appreciated!

When my friend started using them they were aggressively looking for rental portfolios in the market so he is sort of grandfathered in with them.Hope this helps with your decision.

Glue-Down: Click-lock is DIY-friendly.$1.5-3 per sf.

Even if your friend only paid $500k for his $1M house he’s selling you.

I have a lot of clients and friends looking in the market.

If in a tenant-friendly state, the Payment Plan may make sense - but only if tenant signs document stating specific payment dates & amounts and can update their income info to prove they can afford the payments.