I believe the prices are lower there compared to Bentonville because of this reputation.

Still, you may try evaluating a different east coast market and seeing if you're liking more of what you see down here compared to NYC/Newark.

Bigger markets do offer more data and comparables, which can make your initial analysis easier.

Than I compare those, and I pick one.

I'd also recommend checking out the Market Finder tool (biggerpockets.com/markets) for a quick way to compare markets and narrow your search to a few top-performing areas. 

We don’t know any PMCs to recommend in the area mentioned, but since selecting the wrong PMC is usually more harmful than selecting a bad tenant, you might want to read our series about “How to Screen a PMC Better than a Tenant”:https://www.biggerpockets.com/member-blogs/3094/91877-how-to-screen-a-pmc-better-than-a-tenant-part-1-services-and-processesWe recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

I think that compared to 10 years ago, the financing is more aggressive, and there is more competition. 

I currently live next door to one of the areas most popular restaurants and my vehicle is somewhat distinctive if you notice it simply because no one else in the area has one, not because it’s an expensive sports car or something.

Short term rentals can be advantageous for immediate cash production, but are more risk as compared to a long term rental.

I'm looking for recommendations based on your experience with insurance companies that cover STRs in this area or other mountain markets that are comparable.