As I bounce around from one idea to the next, I was wondering if anyone in the community has been successful with starting up a short term business in the Dominican Republic?

Hey Orlando,Long story short - no. 

The return on investment just doesn't make sense sometimes in the short term.

I would rather buy a solid piece of real estate and realize the rent potential in the short term future than just buy something for cash flow sakes."

You regretted getting into this 2 years later, you'll regret selling these properties shortly if they are in good areas of Durham.Fast solutions have slow problems.

Is it short term or long term rental?

While there are certainly no vacationers here, there are a good amount of people that use short-term rentals for contract work for 1-3 months.

Even if their pay doesn't increase this is a small enough change for most tenants to adjust to within their budget especially if they come to expect it with their next lease renewal. 5. 1-3% annual increases might not keep up with rent price increases in the short run.

In the short term, I aim to replace my monthly income from my current entry-level job, I dont make a ton of money so this shouldn't be too difficult.

This stabilization period is expected to be short-lived, creating a window for strategic investments.