Their ads are all over my social media newsfeed (Instagram).

@Natali Cobb depends on what is common for the area.Also, you can put in your ad that W/D negotiable and see what the responses are.

I had another person try to bargain me down to $1700/month, and said she was moving out of her dad's house and so needed room to store boxes in the extra bedrooms. 

I just want to give an overview of the characteristics of the city and people for the sake of adding any bit of valid information to your research.

I should have also added that the reason I am pulled towards real estate as a wealth generating mechanism (I.e. the appreciation aspect) is that I bought my first house with ~$20K of my own money in Baltimore (supplemented with 6K of grants), bought at the right time and did a little fixing it up, used the proceeds from sale of Baltimore home to get into the lower end of the market in quickly appreciating Seattle.

I have been lurking on here forever, but just recently became a member so that I can access all the extras.

Your test ad doesn't mean this house is a great STR.

It may sound nice to pay a 6% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no additional fees.

This benefits you now and in the future.Key is to develop a checklist and keep adding to it.  

And if you want to be in real estate, while I normally don't tell people they should get their license to be an investor, if you are a good marketer and networker, getting a license can be a good way to pocket some extra money on weekends and evenings, while learning a thing or two about real estate.